>I have some questions on Adrenal treatment:
>Has anyone ever used the Suprelorin implant for adrenal disease? If
>so, where can you get it?

Full details of my Sugars treatment with Suprelorin. (probably in the
first 2- in the UK)

I live in tne UK where suprelorin is approved (also all of Europe and
Australia) but I do know that Suprelorin has been used in the US a few
times but I don't know how it was obtained.

08/28/008
My 3 yo Sugar has just been diagnosed adrenal with swollen vulva and
thinning fur. Despite my best efforts, not neutered until 9 months old
and restricted to natural light by being shut in the unlit ferret room
as dusk turns to night. There is a window in the room but the nearest
artificial light is 200 yds away. As well as the room being dark they
have a choice of dark sleeping boxes in their cage. All to no avail it
seems.

After reading every opinion that has probably been written on the
treatment of the illness My vet and I have decided that a Suprelorin
implant, (Generic name is deslorelin acetate) is the way to go with
the addition of oral melatonin. We decided against surgery as removal
of one gland often leads to the other needing removal at a later date.
Also it is reported the time to relapse period is longest for female
ferrets who do not have surgery (medication only, this was a study on
the use of lupron). The opposite is true for male ferrets as prostate
problems are an additional factor.

As this is a fairly new treatment (not yet approved in the US but OK in
Europe) I intend to post regular updates on her progress so that we can
all learn.

09/03/2008
Sugar received her implant today. Suprelorin 4.7mg.

In the six days since she was diagnosed her fur generally has coarsened
and thinned all over. She has very little fur on her feet and looks
like a pink-footed ferret. Her skin pigment is very pink.

For anyone in Europe the implant can be ordered from Virbac S.A. they
are the sole licensed supplier in Europe. The cost in the UK is [UK#]56
but there are two implants in the pack, I offered to pay for both as
neither I nor the vet realised this but he only charged me [UK#]28 +
tax and he will find out the shelf life of the implant. He injected the
implant while I held her and let her lick ferretone from my finger, she
only flinched as the implant was ejected from the end of the (huge)
needle.

Sugar's progress
Day 10.
Sugar's vulva has decreased in size to about 50% of what it was on the
day she was treated. I first saw a change about day 5 but I couldn't
persuade myself that it wasn't my imagination. I have checked every day
and the changes are so small day by day that it is hard to see a
difference but now I am sure.

Day 30
Sugar's vulva is now less then half its maximum size, the day to day
changes are imperceptible but it is smaller than day 10. Her skin
pigment has lost its very pink color and her fur feels softer. At this
time of year they all get combed every day with a fine steel flea comb
as this helps me judge the condition of their under fur by the feel of
the comb. Over the last few days I have started to get a few wisps of
fur from Sugar and this is about the time of year my ferrets begin to
put on their winter coats.

All my ferrets seem to take 4-6 weeks, centered around October to
complete this process. The timing may be climate/latitude influenced
but its always the same. She has become more playful over the past few
days, more like her old self.

Day 60
Sugar's vulva is now 5-10% of its maximum size, the changes seem to
happen in a non linear way, nothing seems to happen for a week and then
a big reduction in size almost overnight. She seems to have almost
finished shedding her summer coat, I am combing out less day by day,
she was a bit skimpy in the fur department anyway but she had no bald
patches. She has become livelier than she was prior to the implant and
is now enjoying a good wrestle everday with Suki. Her appetite seems to
have improved but that may be just stoking up for the colder weather.

Day 90
Sugar's vulva is now of normal conformation as far as I can tell, the
changes continued to happen in a non linear way. She has now got her
full winter coat, very thick and soft with some yellowing around the
neck and shoulders, this yellowing has stabilised with no increase in
area over the past 3 weeks. She has remained livelier than she was
prior to the implant and her appetite remains good.

6 months

Sugar is still symptomless at the 6 mth point. Still has the slight
yellowing around the neck area. She is just beginning to shed her
winter fur so I will soon know if the yellowing is just a residual
affect of the initial hormonal changes or if the secretion is still
happening. Appetite, activity levels and weight are still good.

I never did use the melatonin as I thought it might confuse the picture
as to how the implant was working.

Tony (not a vet), Sugar and Suki.
In memory of Sally and Sue.. 

[Posted in FML 6267]