I am following up with you regarding Oreo's Vacuolar Hepatopathy diagnosis beck in February at the University of Wisconsin-Madison.
I was advised to wait til May to have his bile acids and liver panel repeated. So I waited and we finally did it. I am happy to report his bile acid tests were near normal with the pre meal being 16.8 and the post meal being 10.4..... In December they had been much higher. And his ALKP had been 675 and had dropped tp 275 now. He is on Denamarin and I have no doubt that has helped him alot. So good news on that level to report to you.
However, I am disturbed about something else on his blood panel that has never been abnormal before. His Triglycerides were up to 497 with the labs cutoff being 291 and his Lipase was 725 with cutoff being 695. Now what bugs me is the vet called me a month ago to give me results and didnt mention these were off. He told me everything was just fine. So I went in yesterday to get Oreo's flea and tick application for him and got a copy of the results and saw those numbers. I got to talk to the vet and he told me those numbers were not bad at all. I still feel he should have told me though they were up.
So you know how I value your opinion. Are those numbers disturbing to you? My vet told me we didnt have to recheck for a year, he was thrilled with the bile acid results. He stressed you treat the dog and not the values, and Oreo is doing quite well and very happy and perky. He thinks Oreo will live out his life with this vacuolar hepatopathy with no problems. I sure hope so.
But do we have more problems brewing with those other two levels? I'm not worried about the ALKP being 275, just relieved it has gone down so much.
Value what you tell me so much Dr. Marie and if you tell me not to worry about this, I will abide by what you say. My vet said dont recheck for a year but I am uncomfortable waiting that long....?
Many thanks Dr. Marie!
Suzie
Dr. Marie replied:
Hi Suzie! I am thrilled to hear that Oreo's levels are coming down! I am not at all worried about an ALP of 275 or about his bile acids levels.
I think I know why the vet did not mention the increases in lipase and triglycerides to you....because he knew you would worry about them!
I would agree. I have absolutely no concerns about these values in Oreo. Lipase is a vague enzyme. If I see a large increase in lipase combined with a large increase in amylase, combined with a sick dog (i.e. vomiting and not eating) then I worry about pancreatitis and I would run a test called a PLI to see if there was a pancreas problem. But a slight increase in lipase (and yes, this is just a slight increase) on its own is absolutely nothing to worry about.
Similarly, I don't get worried about a mild increase in triglycerides. I have only once in my career had a case where I was really worried about triglyceride levels. This dog had levels that were around the 11,000 mark and she had a strange lipid metabolism problem. In people we worry about triglycerides because this can be connected to a cholesterol problem. We don't worry about this in dogs. A mild increase in triglycerides like this, on its own, is absolutely nothing to worry about.
I'm so glad Oreo's tests are looking better, so now you don't need to worry so much!
:)
Dr. Marie.
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Disclaimer: Although Dr. Marie is a qualified veterinarian, the information found on this site is not meant to replace the advice of your own veterinarian. AskAVetQuestion.com and Dr. Marie do not accept any responsibility for any loss, damage, injury, death, or disease which may arise from reliance on information contained on this site. Do not use information found on this site for diagnosing or treating your pet. Anything you read here is for information only.
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Dr. Marie is a veterinarian who practices in a busy animal hospital in Ottawa, Ontario. She created Ask A Vet Question as a resource for good, accurate veterinary advice online. Dr. Marie treats dogs, cats, hamsters, guinea pigs, and rats. She has been a vet since 1999.
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