Introduction
Cushing’s disease causes severe and eventually debilitating symptoms in dogs, and the majority of canine Cushing’s cases cannot be cured. Fortunately, dogs can receive treatments for Cushing’s to offset the disease’s symptoms. Most of the treatment options for Cushing’s disease in dogs are used to give the dog an increased quality of life for his or her remaining time.
Treating Cushing's Disease in Dogs
The type of Cushing’s treatment that is used depends on why the Cushing’s disease developed. Introgenic Cushing’s is caused by over-administration of drugs, like prednisone, which contain corticosteroids. In this case, the Cushing’s disease can be cured by taking the dog off of these medications. Naturally occurring Cushing’s can only be treated through surgery and medication.
Naturally occurring Cushing’s is a result of either a tumor on the adrenal gland, or a tumor on the pituitary gland. If the Cushing’s is caused by a tumor on the adrenal gland, the dog can undergo surgery to remove the tumor. Unfortunately only about 1/6 of all naturally occurring Cushing’s cases are caused by an adrenal gland tumor. The remaining cases are all due to tumors on the pituitary gland. At this time pituitary gland tumors are normally not treated through surgery. In this case, the dog must be placed on medication.
Medication treatments for pituitary tumor Cushing’s disease can have serious side effects. Drugs such as Lysodren and Trilostane can only be administered under supervised treatment. Blood tests will periodically need to be taken to ensure that the treatment is not causing additional problems. Ketoconazole, an antifungal medication, was once a popular Cushing’s medication but is now used only rarely. Despite the risk of serious side effects, supervised treatment options can improve the quality of the dog’s life.