Page 10 - Summer 13

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Joshua – a case of Autoimmune meningoencephalomyelitis by Wendy Dixon, UK
4.2.2013
Joshua a male entire border collie of 15months started having attacks of lethargy, high fever and ‘just not being right’ at the age of 9 months. His local vets conducted numer- ous tests, initially believing him to have a viral condition but when he suddenly deteriorated, he was swiftly referred to a specialist centre, where cerebral spinal fluid analysis confirmed Joshua to be suffering from autoimmune meningo-encephalomyelitis, a condition where his own body was causing inflammation of the brain, spinal cord and other membranes.
He was immediately started on dexam- ethasone and the chemotherapy drug cytara- bine, which quickly resolved the symptoms. Joshua continued on dexamethasone tablets and cytarabine injections every 3 weeks with gradual withdrawal of the medication over time to see, if remission would be maintained. Within one month of coming off all medica- tion, however, Joshua had a relapse of symp- toms and was immediately rushed back to the specialist centre, this time receiving a cytara- bine injection intra-thecally, and again return- ing home on dexamethasone tablets.
Miss H, Joshua’s guardian, was informed that although some dogs may go into remis- sion, prognosis is variable for this breed. Those that have had a relapse have a poorer prognosis of going onto long term remission and suffer side effects of drugs needed to control the condition. It was at this stage that I saw Joshua for homeopathy. He was taking dexamethasone 2mg, 1⁄2 tablet once per day at the time of the appointment.
Joshua’s other problem was hip dyspla- sia, for which he received acupuncture twice per week and hydrotherapy. Tramadol 50mg was also used up to twice per day for hopping in first movement lasting about 15-20 minutes.
First impressions of Joshua were of an open and friendly dog, he greeted me happily on entering the room but quickly settled lying out flat on the cold floor for the remainder of the consult with virtually no reaction. He had the typical shiny long coat and thin lithe build of a collie despite the steroid treatment.
Joshua had been adopted by Miss H at the age of 4 months along with his sister Millie, who lived with a very close friend. Joshua had already lived in two homes prior, the first he was felt to be too demanding and the second home a young child was poking him too much.
The homeopathic consult revealed the following about Joshua:
• He was much more lethargic and serious since starting the medication again after the relapse and was not so playful unless encouraged. He just seemed like an older
dog. “Life was not a game anymore”.
• Despite this drop in energy levels he was
the type of dog that usually never rested and always looked for the next bit of stimu- lation. Miss H said that at hydrotherapy he would just keep going for as long as you would let him, therefore they were limited. He then needed a 2-hour sleep to recover.
• He had a fixation for stones being thrown into water and would try to direct walks to where this activity could take place. He would want this, even if the water source had dried up and was rather obsessive about it. He seemed to like the interaction that this required with the owner.
• He loved interaction with the owners and still tried to please. He liked people in general. He was never left on his own but Miss H felt, he would play and rest rather than fret.
• He used to be extremely friendly with other dogs but since the medication was more indifferent. He was not competitive.
• He had a tremendous sympathy for, how Miss H felt (demonstrated in the consult room with pretend crying immediately elic- iting a reaction from Josh, who quickly got up and went over to her). His sympathetic nature extended to other people and also to complete strangers, where he seemed to especially single out people with disabilities (such as a person in a wheel chair) and give them extra attention. It’s as if he knows they need treating differently.
• He was very fearful of loud noises, which made him frantic such as fireworks and thunderstorms, motorbikes and even the television up loud. He has needed medicat- ing for this in the past. He shakes almost as if he is fitting.
• It had been noticed by a close friend that Joshua’s symptoms had started shortly after a tremendous thunderclap had gone off overhead during a walk. This had literal- ly thrown him to the ground and totally unnerved Josh for days. This was very seri- ous for him.
• There had also been one episode of a epis- taxis, a possible side effect of the cytara- bine medication, which can reduce the production of platelets.
• As expected he is preoccupied with food and at the time lived on a diet of Origin dry dog food plus extra vitamins.
Analysis
There were a few nice clear symptoms in this case, which were repertorised using the fol- lowing rubrics:
1. Mind, ailments, fright;
2. Mind, fear, noise from;
3. Mind, fear, thunderstorm, of; 4. Mind, sympathetic;
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Continued from page 7
Nick Thompson discussed autism in dogs, a syndrome which many of us now realise we have seen, but have not recog- nised as such. Autistic dogs have com- munication problems and are difficult to train. They are often attacked by other dogs and they don’t understand how to interact. These dogs have issues about touch, a strong need for routine, obses- sive behaviour, and food intolerances. Nick discussed factors contributing to the development of autism, such as vaccina- tion, and drug use in the pup and the dam, and illustrated his approach to treatment with several cases. Nick’s major inspiration and guide in this home- opathic approach is the late Tinus Smits and his book “Autism – Beyond Despair – CEASE Therapy”. This approach utilises diet, supplements and potentised toxic substances (such as vaccines and drugs) that have affected the individual.
Ann Wood celebrated the humanity and humility of one of the most respected homeopathic vets, George MacLeod. George was well known for his texts on the homeopathic treatment of animals, lectures in many countries, and involve- ment in veterinary homeopathic educa- tion. Less well known is his gracious gift of his time and expertise to his col- leagues, and his willingness to mentor other homeopathic vets. If Ann’s experi- ence is any indicator, listening to his recordings will also help in attaining the VetMFHom!
Wendy Dixon presented two cases with serious brain pathology. These dogs were currently being treated with conventional immunosuppressants, and had been given very poor prognoses. With homeo- pathic care, the young border collie with autoimmune menigoencephalomyelitis was able to be weaned off his conven- tional drugs and return to being a healthy, happy dog. The 10 year old greyhound with meningioma improved considerably, both physically and mentally. Wendy briefly described the use of the Banerji protocols for cancer. These could be par- ticularly useful for many of our patients, whose guardians do not want to consider aggressive conventional treatment. Wendy and Tom Farrington later made the Banerji protocols and notes on the protocol available on the Blue-Sky forum.
Peter Gregory closed the conference, thanking the conference committee of Mark Elliott and Stuart Marston, who truly worked wonders in a short time with a limited budget. Peter reviewed the Congress in his inimitable way; if you weren’t there, you should be next year!