Vasculitis, My Romeo is very ill......

[ladyjane]

Originally Posted by lataina

I posted an update but when I hit the post button I was logged out. I have no idea if it will post. It was kind of long and I hate to have to retype it all. Does this happen to anyone else? If I take too long I get longed out after clicking the post button.

You can prevent that from happening by clicking that little box next to Remember me.....

You will see it when you sign in.

No, it is not going to show up. Is Romeo ok??

[lataina]

Ok so I will try to post this again. Here goes........

I brought Romeo home today. He hasn't really improved any. His breaths are the same. It seems at the hospital he was ranging 36-54 breaths per minute. He has mild to moderately harsh lung sounds. I will continue to give him Chloramphenicol and he has two new prescriptions for Mycophenolate and Clopidogrel.

The vets at the hospital suspect his respiratory issues are most likely secondary to his Vasculitis, either pleural effusion as a result of low albumin or PTE secondary to the disease or steroid treatment. I spoke with the vet dermatologist and I don't think putting him back on steroids is an option for him. Apparently, steroids can also cause embolisms. And since Romeo's Vasculitis is complicated and they suspect an embolism may have been what cause his breathing problems, I don't feel comfortable putting him on any steroids. After we had to stop the SulfaSalazine, the dermatologist put him on Dexamethasone, which is a stronger steroid than Prednisone. So I think it's safe to say he does not respond well to steroids.

For the moment, putting him back on Pentoxifylline isn't an option either. This med helps his red blood cells wiggle through the damaged vessels and since he will now be on Clopidogrel, a blood thinner, it might not be good.

His protein is low, but again it might just be another side effect of the Vasculitis. The vet gave me some Hills Prescription Diet a/d Critical Care canned food to help with this and his appetite. I am still trying to find some quality food to give him. I saw a thread about companies that send out samples and so far I contacted two of them and they will be sending me some. Hopefully he will like them.

As I was reading through his discharge report I found something that has me uneasy. I will quote it:

"There is overall diffuse bronchointerstitial pattern within the lung fields which may be in part related to superimposition from the pleural effusion. There are some ill-defined nodular opacities seen in the lungs which are difficult to define. Diffuse bronchointerstitial pattern within the lung fields with possible pulmonary nodules. Repeat imaging after removal of the pleural effusion may be helpful in this assessment if clinically feasible. Differential such as granulomatous or metastatic lung disease may be a consideration if pulmonary nodules are confirmed."

I don't like the way this sounds and I have to find a way of getting him another X-ray after we get over this current hump.

[lataina]

Done! Thank you ladyjane.

[lataina]

I also forgot to mention that tomorrow I will be trying to build him some sort of enclosure to keep him in and feed the oxygen through. I have the oxygen tonight but the setup isn't ideal. I will update on that tomorrow. I had to bring him home because I just can't afford to keep him at the hospital.

[MauiGirl]

More prayers going to Romeo.

[lataina]

Originally Posted by MauiGirl

More prayers going to Romeo.

Thank you so much.

[lataina]

I would also like to thank everyone for their prayers and well wishes. I do greatly appreciate it. I hope this thread will be of help to someone that might be going through the same. Hopefully it can save them the time it takes to diagnose Vasculitis.

[horsnaround]

Sending prayers

[ladyjane]

My heart hurts from reading this.....I really don't think Romeo should be at home. :
I wish I had an answer for you....
Do you have any family or friends who might help? Can you apply for Care Credit?
The only other option would be to surrender him to someone such as a rescue who could provide the medical care for him, but do you know what his prognosis is?? Did they say??

[lataina]

He is not any worse. I already reached my limit on my CareCredit and didn't get approved for an increase. I've also already maxed out my credit card.

My BF works in Respiratoy Therapy and is the one helping me with Romeo's setup at home. I discussed it with the vet before bringing him home and they had no problem with it as long as I monitor him. He is on the same liter flow, with a humidifier.

I can't really count on family for help. I set up a gofundme account for him back in July and was only able to raise $90. The thing with that, is spreading the word and people did share his story but there are so many people on that site that I guess his just got lost.

Originally Posted by ladyjane

My heart hurts from reading this.....I really don't think Romeo should be at home. :
I wish I had an answer for you....
Do you have any family or friends who might help? Can you apply for Care Credit?
The only other option would be to surrender him to someone such as a rescue who could provide the medical care for him, but do you know what his prognosis is?? Did they say??

[ladyjane]

Okies....well that is great your boyfriend can help with the oxygen!

I sent you a PM

[lataina]

Originally Posted by horsnaround

Sending prayers

Thank you.

[Dayswalters]

Sometimes being at home can be good if you can provide 24 hour care. My cat was given a 1% chance of living so I took her home to be comfortable. I cared for her every 2 hours with fluids, medication, calorie booster, picking her up to hold her so she could go to the bathroom and putting drops in her eyes to keep them from drying out because she didn't even blink. It took 3 months of care but she did recover. When I took her back to the vet, he said sometimes love can do more than medicine.

I'm not saying ANYONE should not go with recommended care! My doctors told me there was really no hope, so my efforts were a last resort.

I will continue to keep Romeo in my prayers.

[TxVicki]

My heart just aches for all you going through with sweet Romeo. I am sending out mega prayers for you both.

[lataina]

Originally Posted by ladyjane

Okies....well that is great your boyfriend can help with the oxygen!

I sent you a PM

Originally Posted by Dayswalters

Sometimes being at home can be good if you can provide 24 hour care. My cat was given a 1% chance of living so I took her home to be comfortable. I cared for her every 2 hours with fluids, medication, calorie booster, picking her up to hold her so she could go to the bathroom and putting drops in her eyes to keep them from drying out because she didn't even blink. It took 3 months of care but she did recover. When I took her back to the vet, he said sometimes love can do more than medicine.

I'm not saying ANYONE should not go with recommended care! My doctors told me there was really no hope, so my efforts were a last resort.

I will continue to keep Romeo in my prayers.

Wow! I am so glad your cat recovered. I can't even imagine how the poor thing felt, and how hard for you. I'm so happy you were able to care for her. Thank you for thinking of Romeo.