Microvascular dysplasia
 

Has anyone experienced microvascular dysplasia? Tell me about your experience. I have a small yorkie that may have it and I need some discussion.

Yes, I have a dog with MVD. What do you want to know?

I want to know her size, age, how you found out that she has MVD and how she is doing to start with. What you do to help her, how long she has had it now. What the vets say. I am sure hat I will think of more to ask but that will help! Thanks!

Hi Cindy,

Daisy was age 6 when she was diagnosed with MVD by a Board Certified Internal Medicine Specialist after a dermatologist vet picked up a liver issue missed by my general vet. Her diagnosis was based on her exam, symptoms, blood work, bile acids, and ultrasound findings. She did not have a liver biopsy, which is why it is a presumptive diagnosis rather than a definitive one.

Daisy is now going to be 12 in September. She is about 7 lbs now which is a little on the lean side but not skinny. I would say that Daisy is a very well managed dog and enjoys her life very much and would seem "normal" to you if you met her.

I won't bore you with the details of her history, but today, she is managed on a moderate protein, low fat, vegetarian diet consisting of home cooked ingredients. When she has a flare of liver symptoms, we use Marin and Denosyl to bring her into balance, along with medications like antibiotics and medication to calm her GI tract. She now has some early kidney disease, but her liver disease does not prevent us from helping her kidneys with two medications. She also takes a joint supplement daily.

I woudl be happy to give you any additional info if you want it.

Hi, I would love to know what the dermatologist found that lead her to suspect a liver disease. Also the recipe for the home made diet that you give her if at all possible and the meds. Meese is suspected of having MVD but no liver biopsy yet. I hate to put her through it. What kind of symptoms does she have?

Also what where her ultrasound findings? Meese's US was normal which just meant that she does not have a liver shunt visible. Her bile acids were high on her post lab, normal on the pre. Liver blood work looked a little off but not enough to get upset about.

My Cali was diagnosed with it at 8 months of age. She had been an unhealthy puppy. She wouldn't eat, tummy upsets and had episodes of hypoglycemia. Her Bile acids were on the first test something like 0/43 and on retest 0/89. I had her to a internal medicine specialist and a board certified surgeon. The ultrasound did not show a shunt so the surgeon did a liver biopsy which showed she had a very mild case of MVD. I just keep her on a lower protein diet. She has done fine and just turned 7 years old a few days ago. I hope your baby is ok.

Patti, Thanks for your response. I am just trying to figure out the best course of action and to weigh what I must do. It sounds like your little girl has been managed pretty well. Is she a small girl? So it is a low protein diet that should be followed? It was an neurologist that did my bile acid test and US as he wanted to be sure that my Meese could undergo the MRI so it is suspected that she may have mild MVD. Can you tell me about the liver biopsy?
Thank you!

Cali was small asa puppy but mostly because she wouldn't eat. She is at a good weight at 5.2 lbs. Now she is a little chow hound and the most active of my 3 girls even though she is the oldest. Cali went in to heat at 8 months and during that we thought she had an internal blockage. So the Board certified surgeon said she would spay her during her heat, check for a blockage, do intestinal biopsies (due to her tummy problems) and do the liver biopsy. Her recovery was a little harder due to a larger incision from being spayed in heat and she stayed an extra day at the er clinic. Otherwise she was just fine. The liver biopsy confirmed a very mild case of MVD and they felt she needed no treatment. I keep her on lower protein diet just as a precaution. Every year she gets blood work and her vet has been extremely happy with her results. Her vet does take all the precautions of a liver compromised dog when prescribing medicine and putting her under anesthesia just to be safe. But honestly Cali is a very active happy dog 6 1/2 years later. Watch the protein level in treats some are very high in protein. Are they doing the MRI to look for internal shunts? It's been over 6 years since Cali was diagnosed so they never did an MRI. If you have any other questions just ask. I know it is a scary time. Praying your baby is ok.

Thanks Patti,

The MRI is for brain issues. She has weakness on her left side and turns in circles. This has been going on for 2 years. They told me 2 years ago that she had a brain tumor and would most likely only live 2 years. I elected not to do the MRI at that time because they said treatment for it would not buy her much time. Why put her through all that if it would not really help her? So here we are 2 years later and now they say it is either hydrocephalus or she had a stroke. Because her labs were off last year they decided to check her liver before doing the MRI. So her bile acids were 60 post this time which is still higher than normal but they feel comfortable doing the MRI now. Since it has always been a question about her liver I feel that it may just be a good ideal to watch her diet in this respect since as you know with MVD they really cannot do surgery. I was wondering if there was anything else I can do for her. Thank you for all your help! Your baby is lucky to have you as a mom.

The dermatologist ran a comprehensive blood profile which showed liver enzyme elevations. The recipe for the home made diet is custom designed for her by a veterinary nutritionist, dr remillard. It is a very restrictive vegetarian diet, due to allergies and IBD. The original diet she ate was Hill's LD but could not tolerate it due to allergies and Irritable bowel disease (IBD).

The meds used when she flares usually include some or all of the following:
Marin (milk thistle supplement)
Denosyl (SAM-E supplement)
Amoxicillin (antibiotic)
Flagyl (for diarrhea)
Pepcid AC (for gastritis)

Her ultrasound findings were: no macroscopic shunt detected, decreased liver size, underdeveloped portal blood vessel system, chronic renal changes, and hypermotile intestines (suspicious for IBD).

Poor baby! Sounds like you are giving your little one excellent care.
Thanks for the information.

Wow! YT is awesome! i learned something new today...again, thanks to this forum.I'm glad that the babies with this disease are doing well. There are so many things I had never heard of. Thanks to all you who share your knowledge and experience...Bless you all!