Metacam, Uti And Diabetes. Mega Stressed :(

[Claire W]

Can somebody please advise me as I am currently having a mega stress

Ellen was diagnosed with diabetes last October once a urine and blood test confirmed high glucose. However, after a diet change, her urine sample was back to normal within two weeks (no more glucose).

Ellen is currently being treated with Septrin and Metacam for a uti. This is stressing me out in itself as after 3 weeks, she still has blood in her urine not only that but today's sample has also shown that her glucose levels are high

My vet has asked me if she has had something different in her diet which she hasn't.

I have however just got home from the vets and the only thing she has had differently is metacam. Does anyone know if metacam is high in sugar and whether this may he responsible? She's been having 0.2ml of dog metacam daily.

My vet is going to try and get hold of a specialist but this will obviously take a few days.

My vet has also explained that high glucose levels in guinea pigs can also bring on uti's

I'm just mega stressed out by it all as I went through exactly the same thing this time last year with Emma who was eventually diagnosed with IC

@helen105281 @Adelle @pig in the city @furryfriends (TEAS) or anyone else who may have any ideas?

 

[Adelle]

Can somebody please advise me as I am currently having a mega stress

Ellen was diagnosed with diabetes last October once a urine and blood test confirmed high glucose. However, after a diet change, her urine sample was back to normal within two weeks (no more glucose).

Ellen is currently being treated with Septrin and Metacam for a uti. This is stressing me out in itself as after 3 weeks, she still has blood in her urine not only that but today's sample has also shown that her glucose levels are high

My vet has asked me if she has had something different in her diet which she hasn't.

I have however just got home from the vets and the only thing she has had differently is metacam. Does anyone know if metacam is high in sugar and whether this may he responsible? She's been having 0.2ml of dog metacam daily.

My vet is going to try and get hold of a specialist but this will obviously take a few days.

My vet has also explained that high glucose levels in guinea pigs can also bring on uti's

I'm just mega stressed out by it all as I went through exactly the same thing this time last year with Emma who was eventually diagnosed with IC

@helen105281 @Adelle @pig in the city @furryfriends (TEAS) or anyone else who may have any ideas?

I have plenty of experience with bladder issues in piggies but not with diabetes I'm afraid. Blood in the urine can be from an inflammed bladder wall rather than infection, which is typical of IC so try and not focus on that too much.

I guess the turning point will be trying to find out if an unbalance in her diabetes has caused the blood in urine or the effect of a UTI has caused it to become a little out of wack.

Metacam is flavoured with honey, which is obviously sugar but I'm not sure if the amount is significant enough.

An ultrasound of her bladder to see if it is truelly inflammed may be an idea. Failing any progress, the vet may trial insulin to see if the bladder issue resolves itself once her diabetes is under control.

I'm sorry I'm not much help x

 

[Claire W]

I have plenty of experience with bladder issues in piggies but not with diabetes I'm afraid. Blood in the urine can be from an inflammed bladder wall rather than infection, which is typical of IC so try and not focus on that too much.

I guess the turning point will be trying to find out if an unbalance in her diabetes has caused the blood in urine or the effect of a UTI has caused it to become a little out of wack.

Metacam is flavoured with honey, which is obviously sugar but I'm not sure if the amount is significant enough.

An ultrasound of her bladder to see if it is truelly inflammed may be an idea. Failing any progress, the vet may trial insulin to see if the bladder issue resolves itself once her diabetes is under control.

I'm sorry I'm not much help x

Thank you for your reply.

I'm going to wait and see what the specialist says once my vet has spoken to her. I expect she will request another sample in a week or twos time. It just worries me so much.

Emma has IC which is controlled with cystease and metacam, I'm just hoping Ellen doesn't have that too. She's only18 months old. My vet did say that her bladder feels nice and soft though so she isn't worried about bladder stones etc x

 

[pig in the city]

Sorry to hear about this Claire, don't worry too much about the raised glucose in the urine, it doesn't mean her blood sugar is high. I assume she is not drinking excessively or losing weight? I suspect she has IC, it is so common, and as you know can be managed well with the correct treatment.
So many piggies get it, unfortunately, despite doing all the correct things with diet etc.
Feel free to give me a call if you want a chat (although avoid tomorrow as its my birthday!) x

 

[Wiebke]

Can somebody please advise me as I am currently having a mega stress

Ellen was diagnosed with diabetes last October once a urine and blood test confirmed high glucose. However, after a diet change, her urine sample was back to normal within two weeks (no more glucose).

Ellen is currently being treated with Septrin and Metacam for a uti. This is stressing me out in itself as after 3 weeks, she still has blood in her urine not only that but today's sample has also shown that her glucose levels are high

My vet has asked me if she has had something different in her diet which she hasn't.

I have however just got home from the vets and the only thing she has had differently is metacam. Does anyone know if metacam is high in sugar and whether this may he responsible? She's been having 0.2ml of dog metacam daily.

My vet is going to try and get hold of a specialist but this will obviously take a few days.

My vet has also explained that high glucose levels in guinea pigs can also bring on uti's

I'm just mega stressed out by it all as I went through exactly the same thing this time last year with Emma who was eventually diagnosed with IC

@helen105281 @Adelle @pig in the city @furryfriends (TEAS) or anyone else who may have any ideas?

Metacam contains a bit of honey, so if necessary, just stop it. Hopefully, her glucose levels will come quickly once you do that. Your vet may want to consider switching to another painkiller in the future if and whenever necessary.

 

[Claire W]

Thank you @pig in the city @Wiebke

I have since spoken to my vet who had phoned me back and has advised that the metacam may be to blame (obviously it also may not) so I'm to take her off, carry on with the Septrin for another week and take her back.

If she still has glucose, Lindsay will check her blood sugars but she isn't too concerned as Ellen isn't losing weight and / or excessively drinking. Neither is she uncomfortable when her bladder is palputated.

If there is still blood present, we will be looking at swapping antibiotic (she doesn't want Ellen to stay on the Septrin for much longer as I made that mistake with Emma, scan her etc but she doesn't want to rush in to anything just yet.

She feels this is just a blip which we will soon get back under control so please keep your fingers crossed x

I hope you enjoy your birthday Barbara x

 

[Swissgreys]

OK, I have no idea if this is the same as in pigs, but I am diabetic, and often when I am coming down with an illness the first sign is raised blood sugar levels.
It can actually be the bodies response to illness, and things are a bit 'out of whack' while your system focuses on fighting the infection.
Metacam could easily cause the increased sugar in her urine, as a teaspoon of honey will rise the blood sugar levels of an average sized adult, so I am sure a small amount will have a similar effect in a guinea pig.
Plus I don't know about the ingredients in Septrin, but in humans any medication that contains steroids plays absolute havoc with blood sugar levels.
Something to maybe check with a cavy savvy vet or bear in mind for future reference.

Hopefully the problem is simply related to the infection, and once that has cleared then it will all be back to normal again.

 

[Adelle]

Just a thought, septrin is banana flavoured.. Could be spiking the glucose levels x

 

[eileen]

claire w i hope your piggie gets better soon,ive not had much experience with bladder issues in cavies.lots with humans !s to you.x

 

[Claire W]

Thank you everyone

@Swissgreys that is one of the theories, my vet isn't sure whether the uti has caused the diabetes flare or the diabetes flare has caused the uti

I've took her off the metacam following my vets advice. She's not particularly cavy savvy but she's good and has contact with an excellent specialist.

Will she be OK to carry on taking the septrin until we next take her to the vets on 10th October? If it is that making her sugar levels higher, will it cause damage to her?

 

[Swissgreys]

Thank you everyone

@Swissgreys that is one of the theories, my vet isn't sure whether the uti has caused the diabetes flare or the diabetes flare has caused the uti

I've took her off the metacam following my vets advice. She's not particularly cavy savvy but she's good and has contact with an excellent specialist.

Will she be OK to carry on taking the septrin until we next take her to the vets on 10th October? If it is that making her sugar levels higher, will it cause damage to her?

She absolutely needs to keep taking the Septrin.
Getting the infection under control is the priority, and then you can deal with the other issues.
Raised blood sugar for a short time is almost certainly less harmful than an untreated urinary infection.

Unfortunately with a condition like diabetes it can sometimes be a bit of a vicious circle with one thing leading to another and so on.
But it does sound like she is in excellent hands, and what I really meant to convey was that once the infection is under control you may find that the blood sugar returns to normal with no major repercussions.
For now focus on the infection, but I would also be tempted to have her medication free for at least 7 days before doing any tests on her blood sugar levels.
This will ensure a true reading, as opposed to one that looks bad, but was caused by medication which is no longer part of the equation.

I hope this makes sense, and please bear in mind that all of this is from a human perspective - I am absolutely not an expert on how this works in guinea pigs, who have a different metabolism entirely.

 

[Claire W]

She absolutely needs to keep taking the Septrin.
Getting the infection under control is the priority, and then you can deal with the other issues.
Raised blood sugar for a short time is almost certainly less harmful than an untreated urinary infection.

Unfortunately with a condition like diabetes it can sometimes be a bit of a vicious circle with one thing leading to another and so on.
But it does sound like she is in excellent hands, and what I really meant to convey was that once the infection is under control you may find that the blood sugar returns to normal with no major repercussions.
For now focus on the infection, but I would also be tempted to have her medication free for at least 7 days before doing any tests on her blood sugar levels.
This will ensure a true reading, as opposed to one that looks bad, but was caused by medication which is no longer part of the equation.

I hope this makes sense, and please bear in mind that all of this is from a human perspective - I am absolutely not an expert on how this works in guinea pigs, who have a different metabolism entirely.

Thank you for this. I'm finding your advise very helpful even though it us from a human perspective. Definitely things to mention to my vet and I will keep her on the septrin.

I've just found this online so am wondering if septrin is sugar free? Ellen is taking the standard suspension though, the one that smells of banana

https://www.google.co.uk/url?sa=t&s...61.pdf&usg=AFQjCNGosfevetHuMYuZo3-GQShuyNslvg

I'm just trying to gather as much information as I can before her next vets appointment x

 

[Swissgreys]

It is pretty safe to assume that if a medicine tastes nice then it contains sugar (or artificial sweeteners) of some kind.
Basically once the infection is under control, wait a week and I am sure she will be back to normal with her blood sugars.
I have a blood panel done every 12 weeks, but if I have been ill or on meds for any reason then I often delay the test, or don't take the results too seriously.
And this is based on advice from my endocrinologist, so whilst I am sure different things have an effect in guinea pigs and they metabolise things differently, overall illness and medication are bound to have some sort of effect in the short term.

 

[Claire W]

It is pretty safe to assume that if a medicine tastes nice then it contains sugar (or artificial sweeteners) of some kind.
Basically once the infection is under control, wait a week and I am sure she will be back to normal with her blood sugars.
I have a blood panel done every 12 weeks, but if I have been ill or on meds for any reason then I often delay the test, or don't take the results too seriously.
And this is based on advice from my endocrinologist, so whilst I am sure different things have an effect in guinea pigs and they metabolise things differently, overall illness and medication are bound to have some sort of effect in the short term.

Thank you. I'm hoping that my vet will know some of this already but it's great advice and suggestions to bring up. I know that there is something that can be given to help regulate the sugar levels but I'd rather not go down that road if it can be avoided

 

[Claire W]

Just to update that Ellen has been back to the vets this morning.

Ellen's glucose levels are thankfully back to normal so it must have been the metacam. I asked what we would do in the future if she needed pain relief and Lindsay said not to worry as there are other things she could have.

She still has a very tiny trace of blood in her urine but my vet feels that it is so little, it could rectify itself (that's what happened with Eliza a few years ago) so I'm to stop giving the Septrin and have her urine tested again in two weeks time. Obviously if she starts weeing blood again or her behaviour changes, I'm to take her back sooner.

Edward has also been given the all clear for his eye infection.

So may be, just may be I can relax a little now?!