Feline Acromegaly
This underdiagnosed
glandular is caused by a pituitary tumor, leading to
diabetes that may be
difficult or impossible to control.
Chester is
a 13 year-old diabetic orange tabby.
When he first presented to my feline-only veterinary hospital five years
ago, he had the classic signs of diabetes:
excessive thirst, increased urination, and weight loss despite an
exceptionally good appetite. Making the
diagnosis was easy. Chester’s blood
sugar was greater than 400 mg/dl (normal is somewhere in the 80 to 150 range)
and he had lots of sugar in his urine.
Most diabetics are male. (He is.)
Most are middle aged. (He was.)
Most are overweight. (He was.) It
was a classic, textbook case.
I
prescribed insulin injections twice daily for Chester. After a couple of minor adjustments, we
arrived at the insulin dose that controlled his diabetes: 3 units twice daily. A typical diabetic cat requires somewhere
between 1 and 4 units twice daily.
Finding Chester’s proper insulin dose was almost as easy as making the
diagnosis. Every six months thereafter, I examined
Chester, and my physical exam findings, coupled with a few simple blood tests,
confirmed that Chester’s diabetes was very well regulated.
And then it
wasn’t.
