From:
Caitlyn Martin
Date: 2009-07-28 20:01:29 UTC
Subject: Re: [ferrethealth] adrenalectomy complication
To: ferrethealth@yahoogroups.com
Amanda, I am very sorry there was a problem with the right adrenal
removal as part of Izzy's bilateral surgery. I hope she recovers
well.
Two vets my ferrets have seen, including the one (now retired) who
pioneered right adrenal surgery in ferrets would always ligate the
vena cava before attempting to remove the right gland with
conventional microsurgery. (Cryo is a different matter.) I get the
impression that wasn't done initially with Izzy. It might be worth
discussing with your vet in a polite way that doesn't second guess his
skills. I'm also writing this in the hope that folks whose ferrets
are facing adrenal surgery will discuss how a right adrenalectomy is
handled with their vet before deciding to go ahead.
I also hope that both you and your vet are well aware of the issues
involved with a successful and complete bilateral adrenalectomy,
specifically surgically induced Addison's Disease. Make sure your vet
has a plan in place to make sure Izzy's electrolytes are within normal
range and tests that every few days until she is stable. In cases
where I've had ferrets with both adrenals out this was a very
difficult process requring a fair amount of trial and error until the
right dosages were found. In the meanwhile the ferret was miserable.
Once the correct dosages of pediapred (prednisolone) and florinef
(fludrocortisone) were found the ferrets started improving very
quickly.
I had one particulary challenging ferret named Pertwee who was
non-responsive to prednisone ir prednisolone and he went into a full
blown Addisonian Crisis. This was the single most frightening
experience I've had as a ferret owner. Please go through the archives
and read up on what this means and what the symptoms are if you don't
know already. In Pertwee's case dexamethasone replaced prednisolone
and he then recovered well.
I wish you and Izzy all the best.
Caity and the terrific trio (Ella, Zephyr, and Chin Soon)
http://ferretsofdisorder.blogspot.com
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