My dog's dexamethasone for edema ran out. Can prednisone help?

It’s safe to use the prednisone with the dexamethasone shot, they are in the same class of steroids. I would wait more like 5-7 days between the last prednisone and the Rimadyl. Longer if Toby is prone to stomach upset or diarrhea. When used closely together, these two classes of medications can cause bleeding stomach ulcers.

Your dog should be weaned off Prednisone slowly. In many ways, prednisone is similar to the corticosteroid hormones cortisol and aldosterone produced by the adrenal glands located along each kidney. Because of this, when taking prednisone, the adrenal glands start decreasing their production of cortisol. It would be too shocking for the adrenal glands to find themselves out of the blue in need of producing cortisol in large amounts again, so by tapering the prednisone gradually, the glands are given some time to resume their normal function. The main risk is what is called an " addisonian crisis" or "iatrogenic hypoadrenocorticism" which can be life threatening and can cause the dog to go into shock. This can happen when the prednisone is stopped out of the blue and the adrenal glands are dormant because they weren't given a chance to gradually become active again. When this happens, the dog's potassium and sodium levels get unbalanced. The sodium levels start to fall, while the potassium levels start to rise. High potassium levels can have a detrimental effect on the heart and can lead to circulatory collapse. Affected dogs may appear weak, lethargic, they may vomit, have a low, irregular heart rate and may go into shock and even collapse. Affected dogs need to seek immediate emergency treatment to correct the electrolyte imbalances and possible low glucose levels through supportive care consisting of fluid therapy and careful monitoring. Rapidly-acting corticosteroid medications such as prednisolone sodium succinate or dexamethasone sodium phosphate may be needed. This whole ordeal can be easily prevented by gradually tapering the dog off the steroids. Dogs on prednisone for quite some time, need to be tapered even more gradually. The vet will tell owners how.

I definitely agree that prednisone tapering should take much longer but if you have already switched him to Rimadyl you cannot give him the prednisone anymore. if you have not switched him yest you should do a much slower tapering over a period of at least 2 weeks, reducing gradually every 5-7 days.

Dexamethasone is 7 times stronger than prednisolone and has an increased rate of GI upset or stomach ulcers. Typically on prednisolone is used in cat because prednisone is broken down to prednisolone--so it is easier to start with the broken down form already. Prednisolones are specifically used when talking about lymphoma due to the potential side effects of dexamethasone. Dr.s chooses one over the other base on preference or what you are treating -- specific diseases have research to back the use of one--lymphoma does better with prednisolone. You will not see a fast improvement with just prednisolone or even if you added stronger chemo. It is a slow progress no matter what. Just using prednisolone you can see a good appetite, no change in diarrhea, no added weight gain. It merely suppress the cancer cells temporarily and helps them feel better. Even with other chemos, it is long term process with slow results---2-4 months to see improvement with the diarrhea in severe cases. They stay on the medicine long term and the doses can be alternated based on how each patient responds

Thank you for submitting your question regarding your dog. That is a very high dose of steroids for a dog his size. This dose will suppress his immune system in addition to all of the side effects that you are noticing at home. Steroids will cause panting, increased thirst, urination and hunger. Some dogs will experience skin and coat changes, muscle weakness/ loss and gastrointestinal ulcers in rare cases. Doses this high are only used to treat severe life threatening conditions. I recommend contacting his veterinarian today to discuss his treatment plan. Typically the steroids are tapered once the primary disease is under control. There are other immunosuppressive drugs available that may have less side effects. Perhaps he would do better on a different medication. However, never stop steroids yourself as they need to be carefully tapered down. I hope this information helps!

Some dogs will have an elongated soft palate that can become inflamed, and prednisone helps reduce inflammation. Dachshunds are also more likely to develop a disease called lymphocytic-plasmacytic rhinitis that causes chronic nasal inflammation. This disease is usually diagnosed by taking biopsy samples during a rhinoscopy. In either case, the prednisone would probably not completely eliminate the disease and some kind of medication might be needed long term. I would recommend discussing treatment options with your veterinarian. I think his chest x-rays look normal for his breed.

Hello, thank you for your question about Romeo. Since the course of the prednisone was very short it is often not necessary to taper the medication. Based on the information that I have found about DermaVet I believe it is safe to use both at the same time. Of course if you notice Romeo develops any symptoms such as decreased appetite, vomiting, or diarrhea I would recommend having him rechecked by your veterinarian. Hope this helps, glad to hear he is feeling better!