Hyperthyroidism

[mswilly]

My 17 year old cat has been diagnosed with hyperthyroidism from a routine blood test. The vet has suggested surgery (which she says is very risky), radioactive treatment (which is incredibly expensive), or medication. He has no symptoms except for a .5 lb. weight loss. The numbers that she cited were a 4.5 for healthy cats and a 3 for mine.

My questions are:

Is the medication effective? Does he need the medication at this point? Since he is a very senior cat with the feline AIDS virus, what type of treatment is most advisable? We don't want to disturb his quality of life for the years that he may have left, and except for this report he is a frisky old man. We would not subject him to surgery, but we would try the other if we thought that it would give him more years.

[Traci]

Ideally, surgical removal combined with radioiodine treatment would be preferrable. However, surgery does not always come without complications (even regrowth of thyroid tissue). Considering the FIV, I don't know if surgery would be advisable for your kitty in this case, also given his age.

Talk to your vet in greater detail about managing with Tapazole, discuss the potential side effects and ensure that his renal function is not compromised. If you do opt for medical management with Tapazole, be sure to test the thyroid function frequently within the first three months, and because most side effects occur within the first three months of regulation. I think I would give this a shot with the Tapazole and see how kitty fairs. If the medication produces too many side effects, then you and your vet can further discuss alternative options (i.e, radioiodine treatment, etc)