My 15.5 year old cat is two weeks into treatment for hypothyroidism. After 10 days of tablets, he started vomiting, then lost his appetite. Dosage was reduced and he was switched to transdermal. Still not eating. Vet prescribed appetite stimulant. Still vomiting. Diarrhea now. Will his side effects eventually subside? Anyone have good experience with a natural treatment? These side effects are devastating.
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Hypothyroidism - Methimazole
- Thread starter Max2003
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Perhaps you and your vet have already discussed/considered this, but radioactive iodine therapy is an alternative treatment if your cat can't tolerate the methamazole. Others on these board have done it, and it's apparently the only real cure-- the methamazole merely manages the condition.
My experience with my hyperthyroid kitty was that the methamazole stopped working abruptly in less than a year. She was also about 15 years old.
I would be very wary of 'natural' treatments; hyperthyroidism is a serious medical condition that requires medical intervention.
My experience with my hyperthyroid kitty was that the methamazole stopped working abruptly in less than a year. She was also about 15 years old.
I would be very wary of 'natural' treatments; hyperthyroidism is a serious medical condition that requires medical intervention.
I do know, as well, that several members have had very good luck with the radioactive iodine treatment. The cats tolerated it very well, and some are now a few years post-treatment and still doing well.
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Can the iodine treatment be safely given to an older cat who has lost considerable weight and hasn't been eating? I'm convinced this is the way to go if he is an acceptable candidate. Cost is not really an issue. Pills and testing will probably cost more in the long run. There are a couple of facilities a couple of hours away. Otherwise, I will take him off the treatment and let nature take its course. He's a sick kitty. This can't continue. I was figuring the natural remedy couldn't hurt, if I removed him from the meds. On the other hand, I know that mother nature's creations can be just as potentially harmful as man-made stuff.
Don't quote me on this, but as I recall a couple of "our" cats who had this treatment were older and not in good health. I wish I could remember better, but I read so many threads, and have been doing so for several years now, and sometimes details blur.
The title line says hypo but from the discussion I suppose you mean hyper which is to much not to little.
The problem is the gland producing to much hormone and the treatment is to somehow throttle it back. If you don't do that then you have a run away metabolism that is stuck in high gear which is one of the reasons for being thin. The permanent solution is to kill off some of the glands cells and so reduce the amount of hormone it can produce. This is what the radioactive iodine accomplishes. The thyroid is pretty much the only organ that uses iodine so it is targeted by the iodine which kills off some of the cells. It then becomes a balancing act to try and get levels in normal ranges. Problem symptoms will clear up as soon as things get close to normal. Another approach, at least in people, is surgery. A portion of the gland is removed to reduce the hormone flow. My mom had a scar on her throat where they did that to her. I don't think they do it for cats because it is such a small amount of tissue.
But if you can get treatment with iodine and it is successful it will cure the problem and you may not need any other pills after it done. If to much gets killed off then you may need to give supplements to make up the difference.
The problem is the gland producing to much hormone and the treatment is to somehow throttle it back. If you don't do that then you have a run away metabolism that is stuck in high gear which is one of the reasons for being thin. The permanent solution is to kill off some of the glands cells and so reduce the amount of hormone it can produce. This is what the radioactive iodine accomplishes. The thyroid is pretty much the only organ that uses iodine so it is targeted by the iodine which kills off some of the cells. It then becomes a balancing act to try and get levels in normal ranges. Problem symptoms will clear up as soon as things get close to normal. Another approach, at least in people, is surgery. A portion of the gland is removed to reduce the hormone flow. My mom had a scar on her throat where they did that to her. I don't think they do it for cats because it is such a small amount of tissue.
But if you can get treatment with iodine and it is successful it will cure the problem and you may not need any other pills after it done. If to much gets killed off then you may need to give supplements to make up the difference.
Radio iodine is the safest of all treatment options. No side effects like methimazole, no risk of complications from surgery. I think it has something like a 97% success rate, with a small portion of cats needing a second treatment because the first one didn't inactivate enough of the tumor, and a small amount needing to take supplemental thyroid hormone for the restof their life because it inactivated to much of the thyroid. Veterinarians don't bring it up as an option much because the cost scares so many people away, but you're right, it's probably cheaper than drugs long term.
Dr. Pierson has a lot of good to say about it: Feline Hyperthyroidism
There isn't much of a natural way to treat hyperthroidism-low iodine diets can help manage it, but those usually aren't recommended because they don't work as well anyway and can cause other problems.
My hyperthroid kitty is scheduled for radio iodine treatment in a couple of weeks. The downside is, since the cat is technically radioactive and there are laws about that sort of thing, she can't come home for about a week, and she won't get a ton of human attention for a few days because contact is limited to reduce exposure. But it will definitely be worth it!
