My dog has Cushing's. Could past seizures mean a brain tumor?

Initially it will be important to make sure they were seizures and not heart related (syncope/arrhythmia) as these can appear similar. Try to catch an event on video for your neurologist and document what happens before, during, and after the event. You are right the most common sign of a brain tumor is new onset seizures. But we do also always rule out any other causes like systemic issues, heart issues, and any other cancer elsewhere in the body. There are also other problems that can occur in the brain like inflammation. Ultimately what your neurologist will recommend will be based on the exam and information you provide but is likely to include chest xrays, an abdominal ultrasound, and MRI +/- CSF tap. I hope this helps and thank you for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach!

Typically Cushing disease does not cause seizure like behavior. Also I have used trilostane often and have never seen seizures with the medicine. With a very old dog it is possible that Emma has started having seizures secondary to his age/brain function. I would recommend consulting you vet about possible a referral to a neurologist or even starting seizure medications if needed. You can try and video tape the episodes to help your vet determine what is actually going on. Hope that helps

Some common symptoms of Cushings's are panting, increased thirst/urination, but these are also common symptoms of many diseases. Bloodwork and endocrine testing can help to ferret that out. Neurologic symptoms can sometimes be present with Cushing's if there is a larger tumor in the pituitary gland but seizures can also be caused by other things as well so an MRI is typically required. CT can sometimes be used if a pituitary mass is strongly suspected. Itchy feet is typically caused by allergies which may also be associated with secondary infection. Next steps are to see your vet for an exam, bloodwork, and endocrine testing. Abdominal ultrasound and blood pressure measurement are also typical next steps. I hope this helps and thank you for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach!

In my opinion, it is a long shot to diagnose brain tumor based on one episode like that. First of all, it should be established if the episode was a seizure or not (it could have been a muscle spasm or a bout of neck pain, maybe ?). I assume that neurological examination at the time of your visit at your vet was all ok. If Sookie has another similar episode, ideally you should record a video of that and play it back to your vet. It will help to establish if this is a seizure or not. Even if the episode was an epileptic seizure it is not necessary because of brain tumor. Problems like blood clot in the brain vessel, bleeding from a brain vessel, inflammation of the brain, infection or even diseases distant from the brain (for example diabetes, heart diseases) can result in seizure-like episodes. So, the best approach for confirmed seizure is to run blood test first to rule out diabetes, drop in blood glucose level, liver/kidney function etc. If the results are negative AND your dog is experiencing similar, frequent epsidoes you can consider MRI of the brain. Lastly, brain tumors do not respond well to chemotherapy/radiotherapy therefore this mode of treatment is usually not recommended. However, some brain tumors can be surgically removed.

Unfortunately Cushing´s syndrome is caused either by an adrenal tumor, but more often by a brain tumor. Nystagmus (eyes moving from side to side) could be a sign of the brain tumor expanding. Also that she is not steady on her feet could be part of that. On the other hand there is also a chance that this has nothing to do with the Cushing;s disease bu that your dog is suffering from geriatric vestibular disease, which is harmless and should go away by itself within a few weeks. Here is information on vestibular disease: http://download.skyscape.com/download/ota/5mvetcf5/documents/pdf/vestibular_disease_in_senior_dogs.pdf I suggest you take your dog to your vet for a check up. With vestibular syndrome dogs often get nauseous and will not eat, so she may need some medication to take away the nausea.

Cushing's or Hyperadrenocorticism is a fairly common endocrine disease in dogs. It can be caused by a bit of overactive tissue in the brain (in the pituitary gland, which is the master ruler of hormone secretion in the body) or a mass in an adrenal gland (sits by the kidneys, secretes hormones as directed by the pituitary gland). Basically what happens is an excess of a hormone in the body, usually a steroid called cortisol, if it is traditional Cushing's. This then causes some symptoms in the pet, blood work changes, and sometimes other changes like high blood pressure. I suspect based on the value that you report that this was a liver enzyme elevation call ALP. This very commonly occurs in pets that have Cushings, but is not specific for Cushing's and elevation can be caused by other disease processes. This value does not correlate with severity of disease as many dogs have a high value. It sounds like your vet is on the right track by recommending an ultrasound to look at the adrenal glands and also the rest of the abdominal organs to rule out other disease processes. Ultimately Cushing's Disease has to be diagnosed by some sort of endocrine testing which your vet may recommend as well. Treatment if then based on what type of Cushing's disease is present. I hope this helps and thank you for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach!

Cushing's can be pituitary in origin or adrenal in origin. A sonogram can not be performed on the pituitary as it is in the brain. This would require a CT or MRI. A sonogram can be performed on the adrenal glands but this does not definitely diagnose Cushing's (is just one of the tests to help aide in diagnosis), that would require blood testing. It is not a disease that goes away on its own unless surgery is performed to remove a mass that is oversecreting hormones. It sounds like the diagnosis was never truly confirmed, especially if medications are being stopped. I would recommend getting a little more clarification from your vet as to this. If additional help is needed referral to a veterinary internist would be the next step. I hope this helps and thank you for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach!