Notice this: A cryosurgery approach for adrenal disease REDUCES survivability comnpared to other approaches in a study of 130 ferrets who had adrenal surgeries. Otherwise, notice how very well the surgical approaches worked for ferrets: http://ferrethealth.org/archive/FHL4890 ----- J Am Vet Med Assoc. 2008 May 1;232(9):1338-43. Long-term outcome of domestic ferrets treated surgically for hyperadrenocorticism: 130 cases (1995-2004). Swiderski JK, Seim HB 3rd, MacPhail CM,Campbell TW, Johnston MS, Monnet E. Department of Clinical Sciences, College of Veterinary Medicine and Biomedical Sciences, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO 80523, USA. OBJECTIVE: To determine the long-term survival rate and factors that affect survival time of domestic ferrets treated surgically for hyperadrenocorticism. STUDY DESIGN: Retrospective case series. ANIMALS: 130 ferrets with hyperadrenocorticism that were treated surgically. PROCEDURES: Medical records of ferrets surgically treated for hyperadrenocorticism were reviewed. Data recorded included signalment, duration of clinical signs prior to hospital admission, CBC values, serum biochemical analysis results, anesthetic time, surgical time, concurrent diseases, adrenal gland affected (right, left, or both [bilateral]), histopathologic diagnosis, surgical procedure, caudal vena caval involvement (yes or no), postoperative melena (yes or no), days in hospital after surgery, and whether clinical signs of hyperadrenocorticism developed after surgery. RESULTS: 130 ferrets were entered in the study (11 of 130 ferrets were admitted and underwent surgery twice). The 1- and 2-year survival rates were 98% and 88%, respectively. A 50% survival rate was never reached. Combined partial adrenal gland resection with cryosurgery had a significantly negative effect on survival time. No other risk factors were identified. Survival time was not significantly affected by either histopathologic diagnosis or specific affected adrenal gland (right, left, or bilateral). CONCLUSIONS AND CLINICAL RELEVANCE: Ferrets with adrenal gland masses that were treated surgically had a good prognosis. Survival time of ferrets with hyperadrenocorticism undergoing surgery was not affected by the histologic characteristic of the tumor, the adrenal glands affected (right, left, or bilateral), or complete versus partial adrenal gland resection. Debulking was a sufficient surgical technique to allow a favorable long-term outcome when complete excision was not possible. PMID: 18447778 [PubMed - in process] http://avmajournals.avma.org/doi/abs/10.2460/javma.232.9.1338 ----- Sorry, have to get off now for my eye. It takes me about 2 weeks after laser surgery to get back up to speed. and in these frist days even with amber over-lenses I don't deal w light well even w the monitor turned down I can only be on a very few times and things are still blurry for me so mail is getting missed and for the most part trashed for a while and I'd much rather that any mail for the next month not include extraneous stuff, please, but know that if it is sent it will probably never be seen... Sukie (not a vet) Reminding all to have their eye pressures and visual fields tested regularly Recommended ferret health links: http://pets.groups.yahoo.com/group/ferrethealth/ http://ferrethealth.org/archive/ http://www.afip.org/ferrets/index.html http://www.miamiferret.org/fhc/ http://www.ferretcongress.org/ http://www.trifl.org/index.shtml http://homepage.mac.com/sukie/sukiesferretlinks.html [Posted in FML 5968]