Autoimmune disease. To treat based on numbers or leave alone?

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Ladyrosee

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So you basically have four options:
1) 10 mg steroid....platelets rise
2) don't treat and watch....check platelets again
3) small increase in steroid....wait and see
4) try herbs....can take 2 weeks....make sure anemia does not get worse

How much experience does the holistic Vet have with ITP?

I wish you had an online cat-ITP-related group to join....not just for people....or dogs.
(I know you said ITP is rare in cats....which is a good thing....but not in this case.)

You and me both. It pains me to see his poor ears all splotchy and bright red while he just looks up at me with his sweet big eyes like what's wrong mama? I feel fine! Yes.. traditional meds and chinese meds can be fine. It will just be tough if I do raise the pred soon I'll wonder maybe the herbs are working? Or maybe it's only the prednisolone?!
Holistic vet doesn't have much experience but she thinks it can help as it has platelet properties and blood properties to heal some autoimmune things and ITP she thinks can help. Hes on half a dose right now she said in 2 weeks if not helping then can double it
 
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Ladyrosee

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What are the herbs?
Yunnan baiyao which doesnt seem to be doing anything orally and Cool the Blood 125mg. She said on that one its ideal to have double the dose but she wanted to start small. She believes and others do not has autoimmune properties and can help his disease
 

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You and me both. It pains me to see his poor ears all splotchy and bright red while he just looks up at me with his sweet big eyes like what's wrong mama? I feel fine! Yes.. traditional meds and chinese meds can be fine. It will just be tough if I do raise the pred soon I'll wonder maybe the herbs are working? Or maybe it's only the prednisolone?!
Holistic vet doesn't have much experience but she thinks it can help as it has platelet properties and blood properties to heal some autoimmune things and ITP she thinks can help. Hes on half a dose right now she said in 2 weeks if not helping then can double it
How is little Morton doing today?

So your plan, now,...is to use the lowest dose possible of the pred....to see if the plate numbers come up?
At the same time... using the chinese herbs, to supplement the dose of the pred?

And to make sure the anemia....does not get worse.

I take it that you need to give it a week....to see any improvements?.... with the pred?
And 2 weeks....with the herbs?

(Honestly, @Catxmama ....your Morton and you....are so amazing.
It's like the universe chose you to be Morton's pet guardian...and you chose Morton, so that he could teach you about overcoming challenges. Abundant love. And taking it day by day.
Just please, take good care of yourself, too.
(I remember how emotionally draining, and physically, too,....taking care of an ill animal can be. But it was rewarding, too, when you look back. Learning how to cope with it....makes you stronger.)
Reading some of Morton's threads....he's like the strongest cat...ever.
And so are you.:hugs:
 
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Ladyrosee

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How is little Morton doing today?

So your plan, now,...is to use the lowest dose possible of the pred....to see if the plate numbers come up?
At the same time... using the chinese herbs, to supplement the dose of the pred?

And to make sure the anemia....does not get worse.

I take it that you need to give it a week....to see any improvements?.... with the pred?
And 2 weeks....with the herbs?

(Honestly, @Catxmama ....your Morton and you....are so amazing.
It's like the universe chose you to be Morton's pet guardian...and you chose Morton, so that he could teach you about overcoming challenges. Abundant love. And taking it day by day.
Just please, take good care of yourself, too.
(I remember how emotionally draining, and physically, too,....taking care of an ill animal can be. But it was rewarding, too, when you look back. Learning how to cope with it....makes you stronger.)
Reading some of Morton's threads....he's like the strongest cat...ever.
And so are you.:hugs:
He's doing well and eating well and playing. His ears are a mess though far worse than a couple weeks ago when they got a little blotchy and they faded quick. These are getting worse. I think I absolutely have to more than double the steroid to improve the levels then go back to square one of weaning. And it sucks because it's simply a bandaid treatment.... he was down to 1mg of pred and acting beautifully then I tapered more and then this happened. Now he will have to be at almost 10mg. Just a slap in the face. I actually had hope because he WAS in remission for almost 3 months after going cold turkey off meds

That means a lot thank you though. Clearly it was meant that I chose to foster and adopt him. He's seriously the most challenging and rare case even his internal medicine specialist has seen.
 

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He's doing well and eating well and playing. His ears are a mess though far worse than a couple weeks ago when they got a little blotchy and they faded quick. These are getting worse. I think I absolutely have to more than double the steroid to improve the levels then go back to square one of weaning. And it sucks because it's simply a bandaid treatment.... he was down to 1mg of pred and acting beautifully then I tapered more and then this happened. Now he will have to be at almost 10mg. Just a slap in the face. I actually had hope because he WAS in remission for almost 3 months after going cold turkey off meds
Morton eating well, ...and playing....sounds good. :yess:
Even if it's a bandaid treatment....as long as it works.
But those poor ears.:frown:
Yeah...that sucks...about needing that high dose...to get those platelets up....and help those ears. :frown:

If Morton went into remission before...and for almost 3 months...then he can do it again.
Hoping that this time....it's not because of any side-effects from the meds. dam side-effects.
"come on, Morton"...."get that little body to...only take the good things from those meds....balance out your system, and get strong again.":vibes::vibes::blackcat:
"you can definitely do it....little gorgeous Morton."
 
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Ladyrosee

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Morton eating well, ...and playing....sounds good. :yess:
Even if it's a bandaid treatment....as long as it works.
But those poor ears.:frown:
Yeah...that sucks...about needing that high dose...to get those platelets up....and help those ears. :frown:

If Morton went into remission before...and for almost 3 months...then he can do it again.
Hoping that this time....it's not because of any side-effects from the meds. dam side-effects.
"come on, Morton"...."get that little body to...only take the good things from those meds....balance out your system, and get strong again.":vibes::vibes::blackcat:
"you can definitely do it....little gorgeous Morton."

Well the crazy thing is that incident in august where he nearly died he got taken off the cyclosporine and prednisolone the night he got to the hospital and his platelets held. Like his body when its sick wont destroy platelets because its busy trying to attack the correct thing but when hes healthy they go after the platelets. He dropped to 60 thousand one night he was there and went back up to normal on their own 12 hrs later but that's common for ITP to constantly change. But his body makes platelets just destroys them. I've written logs of what he takes for the day, behavior, food, energy every single day since August and I cannot find a damn trend because platelets have been great since August. He had a few bad bouts of health since August not ITP related but over came them with fluid therapy and a course of antibiotics when he got mycoplasma parasite.. now that hes healthy maybe it's back to destroying. The ONLY thing I changed was his steroid. Holding beautifully on 1mg I didnt even think that was doing anything (i could be right still) but once I tapered to half of that dose and full dose switching back and forth every day and gave him more half doses than full this happened a few days later...
 
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