LONGWOOD VETERINARY CTR

"The veterinarians at Longwood Veterinary Hospital are proud of our excellent patient care and client communication and education. In general, when a canine patient is first started on non-steroidal anti-inflammatories (NSAIDS) such as Deramaxx, Rimadyl, Previcox or Metacam, a chemistry screen, complete blood count and urinalysis are recommended. The purpose of this is to ensure that a patient with underlying kidney or liver disease is not put on medications such as these, as they can be harmful to those organs and in rare instances result in liver and/or kiney failure. It is also recommended that bloodwork be repeated 30 days later, 3 months after that, and every 6 months as long as the patient is continuing to receive this type of medication. Monitoring the bloodwork is one way that allows us to find out if a pet is experiencing side effects early on and treat them appropriately. There are times that the only treatment required is to remove the drug. For those dogs who really need NSAIDS to keep them comfortable, changing to a different NSAID is often an option. In this particular aforementioned patient, the initial screening bloodwork showed some abnormalities that required the owner to discontinue the Deramaxx until the problem was resolved. She is actually a good example of why we recommend the screening bloodwork that we do. Had we not looked when we did, the problem may not have been reversible. We realize that there are often financial constraints that need to be considered. Owners have the final word on what they do and do not wish to do for their pets. Our job is to educate owners and make the best recommendations for the care of your furry friends."