|
|
 Medical Therapy
Anti-thyroid drugs
like Tapazole do not offer a cure for hyperthyroidism but rather act to
reduce thyroid hormone production and thus lessen its effects on various
organ systems. Initially developed to treat this condition in people,
Tapazole was never intended for long term usage but rather as a stop gap
procedure to be used while patients were deciding whether or not to pursue
I-131 therapy or surgery. These drugs can also cause a wide range of
undesirable side effects such as nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, inappetence,
pruritus (itching) and facial scabbing, kidney dysfunction (with long term
usage) as well as a drop in both white blood cells (needed to fight off
infections) and clotting factors. Your cat may also become unresponsive to
Tapazole or it may simply stop working. These drugs require pilling one to
three times daily, and frequent blood tests to monitor white blood cell
counts and thyroid hormone levels. The estimated cost of medical management
performed as recommended in the veterinary literature (the cost of Tapazole
and the necessary blood tests) is $800 for the first year, and $600 a year
for the rest of your cat's life.
|
|
|
