Depo- Medrol Injections Anyone?

[Guest BooBooMama]

Arizona (a.k.a. BooBoo) is going to be 10 years old this June. In the past few years she would occasionally yelp when she got up. Each time she would just stretch and shake it off. But in February she began to yelp loud and often, and limp. I took her to the vet. X-rays showed no masses, no arthritis but just a small amount of calcification between two discs. He felt she has lumbosacral stenosis or 'doggy sciatica'. We put her on Rimadyl and Tramadol but after three weeks she was getting no relief. She whined with pain at night- it was getting worse. We changed her meds to a combo of Deramaxx, Tramadol and Gabapentin. She is in less pain but I can't keep her on all these meds- they could destroy her liver. I heard of using intramuscular injections of Depo- Medrol being very effective for this condition. Has anyone else tried this treatment? If so, was it successful? If not, how advanced was the stenosis and what DID you find that worked better?

[greyhndz]

Arizona (a.k.a. BooBoo) is going to be 10 years old this June. In the past few years she would occasionally yelp when she got up. Each time she would just stretch and shake it off. But in February she began to yelp loud and often, and limp. I took her to the vet. X-rays showed no masses, no arthritis but just a small amount of calcification between two discs. He felt she has lumbosacral stenosis or 'doggy sciatica'. We put her on Rimadyl and Tramadol but after three weeks she was getting no relief. She whined with pain at night- it was getting worse. We changed her meds to a combo of Deramaxx, Tramadol and Gabapentin. She is in less pain but I can't keep her on all these meds- they could destroy her liver. I heard of using intramuscular injections of Depo- Medrol being very effective for this condition. Has anyone else tried this treatment? If so, was it successful? If not, how advanced was the stenosis and what DID you find that worked better?

 

Lumbosacral stenosis - detailed info by Dr. Suzanne Stack

 

I'd also think about acupuncture - this has worked wonderfully for my Dandi.

[Guest BooBooMama]

Arizona (a.k.a. BooBoo) is going to be 10 years old this June. In the past few years she would occasionally yelp when she got up. Each time she would just stretch and shake it off. But in February she began to yelp loud and often, and limp. I took her to the vet. X-rays showed no masses, no arthritis but just a small amount of calcification between two discs. He felt she has lumbosacral stenosis or 'doggy sciatica'. We put her on Rimadyl and Tramadol but after three weeks she was getting no relief. She whined with pain at night- it was getting worse. We changed her meds to a combo of Deramaxx, Tramadol and Gabapentin. She is in less pain but I can't keep her on all these meds- they could destroy her liver. I heard of using intramuscular injections of Depo- Medrol being very effective for this condition. Has anyone else tried this treatment? If so, was it successful? If not, how advanced was the stenosis and what DID you find that worked better?

 

Lumbosacral stenosis - detailed info by Dr. Suzanne Stack

 

I'd also think about acupuncture - this has worked wonderfully for my Dandi.

 

@ greyhndz. I have read the link from Dr. Stack myself- that is where I heard of Depo- Medrol injections. I was wondering if anyone has actually tried it. BooBoo just started seeing a veterinary chiropractor/ acupuncturist. She had her first treatment last Friday. So far no results but I understand that it could take up to 4 treatments B4 we notice any relief.

Edited April 1, 2010 by BooBooMama

[FiveRoooooers]

Years ago, my Dane had stenosis. We kept him going with acupuncture, chiropractic, and massage therapy.

 

Currently, Pal receives a depo injection every 6 weeks because of a nerve impingement over his hip. He also gets two Tramadol BID, and more as needed. We have kept him comfortable for two years now with this plan. Good luck with BooBoo.

[Guest BooBooMama]

Years ago, my Dane had stenosis. We kept him going with acupuncture, chiropractic, and massage therapy.

 

Currently, Pal receives a depo injection every 6 weeks because of a nerve impingement over his hip. He also gets two Tramadol BID, and more as needed. We have kept him comfortable for two years now with this plan. Good luck with BooBoo.

 

@FiveRoooooers. Good to hear that someone else has had success with the Depo-Medrol injections. BooBoo started chiro and acupuncture last week. We will try her first injection and second acupuncture treatment this Friday. She has been such a happy and active dog (we were hiking up to 5 miles per day B4 all of this started) I would like to see her regain at least a little of that active healthy lifestyle.

[greyhndz]

I hope that the depo/acu/chiro combination works well for BooBoo (I LOVE that name!). And you're right about the acupuncture taking several treatments before you see results. I believe Dandi showed some improvement after the 2nd treatment, and significant improvement after the 3rd.

 

It sounds as if you've got a great vet team working with you and BooBoo, and I hope your sweetie is feeling a lot better very soon.

[Guest caiteag]

depo-medrol injections worked wonders for my Quinn. They aren't right for every hound.. but I would seriously consider them as they can be hugely helpful.

[kikibean]

I had a foster that did great on the shots. I think it's something that will either work or it won't, no harm in trying it.

[DunesMom]

Depo didn't work any better for Dune than oral steroids and Tramadol. I didn't worry as much about his liver, because he was 14 by then and every month was a gift.

 

But when I asked exactly this same question on GT several years ago, the response was mixed. As Kikibean said, it will work or it won't, and as long as there aren't contraindications for the injections, you may as well try them.

[Guest BooBooMama]

I hope that the depo/acu/chiro combination works well for BooBoo (I LOVE that name!). And you're right about the acupuncture taking several treatments before you see results. I believe Dandi showed some improvement after the 2nd treatment, and significant improvement after the 3rd.

 

It sounds as if you've got a great vet team working with you and BooBoo, and I hope your sweetie is feeling a lot better very soon.

 

@ greyhndz

BooBoo got her name at the track for being so accident prone! I guess we shouldn't be surprised that she has aches and pains in her later years. Thank you for your well wishes. I will let you know how we are doing after the shots and treatments are done. She has three more chiro/ acupuncture treatments booked and her first shot is tomorrow. After that we should be able to determine if they are helping.

 

depo-medrol injections worked wonders for my Quinn. They aren't right for every hound.. but I would seriously consider them as they can be hugely helpful.

 

Good to hear. Her first shot is tomorrow so I am hoping for the best.

[Guest KennelMom]

We had great luck with it with our LS boy, Caesar. It extended his life by a good year and half. Eventually, the shots seemed to lose effectiveness but they were worth it for the time it gave him...he started running around the yard again! I wouldn't hesitate to try it again should we have another dog with LS.

[Guest dmona]

My soon to be 13 yr. old Kelsey has had her 2nd shot, 4 weeks apart, for LS. The shot helped her immediately. They really didn't tell me how advanced it is, but before the shot I could just barely touch her hips and she would go down, that doesn't happen now.

Hope everything works out for BooBoo.