Treating Hyperthyroidism

Important news for owners

of elderly, thin, hungry cats

Does your cat always seem hungry?

Is his coat looking a bit dull?

Do you think he is losing weight?

Is he drinking more water?

Does he have runny poos?

These are some of the symptoms of hyperthyroidism, or over active thyroid glands, and are seen mainly in cats over 10 years. The thyroid is the gland in the neck which produces a hormone, thyroxine, which regulates the rate of metabolism or activity of the body. Some people say that I could be hyperthyroid, skinny little bugger, eat a lot, never sits down and is obsessive compulsive so if your cat is lucky enough to be like me better bring him in for tests!

Seriously, through this disease it can have other important secondary effects. These include high blood pressure which can lead to blindness from retinal bleeding and heart disease called thyrotoxic cardiomyopathy. This is a thickening and enlargement of the heart to meet the increased metabolic demands of excessive thyroid activity. The good news is that this disease can be relatively easily diagnosed with a blood test which we can now perform in house. The other good news is that the symptoms are readily reversible with treatment. The best news is that we are soon to offer the best treatment for these cases. The cause is at yet unclear but research that Lyn, our nutritionist veterinarian, is following indicates that celiac disease may be a link and indeed the majority of these cases do have bowel problems. The role of iodine is also being investigated. Only 2% of cases are due to cancer of the thyroid gland.

Good news about Treatment

Treatment options include surgery to remove the affected gland or part thereof. Since only 2% of these cases involve cancer in which case surgery is indicated, we at pet & vet prefer the common option of medicating with neomercazol. This is very effective but has to be done for the rest of the cat’s life and hyperthyroid cats often are not the easiest to handle. For these reasons one of the best treatments is a one off treatment with Radioactive Iodine131. Up to now this treatment has only been available at a Referral Practice over the bridge but we will soon be offering this option. It involves giving one dose of I131 and then hospitalizing the patient for one to two weeks in our new specially designed treatment/boarding facility. Less than 5% of cases recur after this treatment and it overcomes the daily giving of tablets and reblood testing to keep the dose rates at optimal levels. So if you have a cat with the symptoms discussed or have a cat already diagnosed with hyperthyroidism please do give us a call.

A veterinary perspective by Simon Wright of pet & vet, Milford, Auckland.

Copyright pet & vet.