fluid in one lung only?

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mssmss	fluid in one lung only?	Lead	[-]
Posts: 32 (06/15/09 16:39:13) Reply Quote More My Recent Posts Message Me Connection Blocking Invite Ignore User's Posts	Tags : None I have a little terrier mix dog who has had a heart murmur for years, every since I adopted her from a municipal shelter. She had an episode of collapsing in February and was put on a couple of medicines. She had another episode less than two weeks ago. They said the xrays seemed to show fluid in one lung only, and they wondered if it was pneumonia rather than congestive heart failure. She was hospitalized and given lasix and also antibiotics, but they said the lung was cleared quickly so they were pretty sure it was CHF responding to the lasix. The maintenance dosage of that was increased. She's also on pimobendan. Tried adding Enalapril but she lost her appetite. Bloodwork showed that in just 3 days, her kindeys were affected. Stopped Enalapril but kept up a higher dosage of lasix. Now she is rather weak and lethargic and not eating so well. I'm supposed to take her to a cardioligist for a consultation soon. I'm just wondering if there might be another diagnosis, other than congestive heart faiulre, that might cause the problem with just one lung. Any thoughts?
callie79		#1	[-]
Posts: 94 (06/15/09 18:26:15) Reply Quote More My Recent Posts Message Me Connection Blocking Invite Ignore User's Posts	From my experience years ago as a vet tech, I know that CHF usually presents on x-rays as fluid in both lungs, making another cause like pneumonia possible. Going to a cardiologst is the right move, since he/she can do an echo (ultrasound of the heart) to tell the difference. Of course, I am not a vet, so you may want to check with the WebDVM vets: http://www.web-dvm.net/askthevet.html Dr, Roger is the only vet n this board, a great guy and very helpful, but will usually only take time to advise long established regular contributors to the board. Good luck!
RWDVM		#2	[-]
Posts: 2120 (06/15/09 18:30:04) Reply Quote More My Recent Posts Message Me Connection Blocking Invite Ignore User's Posts	Hey ms, Callie is right, but I have seen you here before, so I would be happy to offer my 2 cents. Generally speaking, Callie's experience taught her well, that most cases of CHF indeed affect both lung concurrently and virtually equally. However, I have seen just one lung affect in the early stages. Since both lasix and antibiotics were used to provide relief, it is very uncertain from an empirical standpoint to differentiate between infection and true CHF. IN this case, an echo is necessary, and best done in the hands of a board certified cardiologist. Good luck! Roger L. Welton, DVM Need a good source for free canine and feline health information? Please visit: Web-DVM
mssmss		#3	[-]
Posts: 33 (06/15/09 18:31:07) Reply Quote More My Recent Posts Message Me Connection Blocking Invite Ignore User's Posts	Thanks, I'll see about doing that. Edited to add: Oops, I see Dr. was writing as I was writing my short thank-you. So thanks to both of you! Last Edited By: mssmss 06/15/09 18:34:05. Edited 1 times.