Side effects of steroids injections for a 10yrs old male cat

My cat was diagnosed with a nasal lymphoma 2 months ago, and has been on chemotherapy(tabletsonce every 3 weeks)and short acting steroid Prednisone tabs(7.5mg every second day)About 2 weeks ago he stopped taking the steroids.I tried hiding it in food,treats,directly into mouth etc.he spits it out or just refuses to take them.The vet has suggested giving him steroid injections every 36 hrs instead.Will the injections have worse side effects than the tabs?He is hyperactive,overeats & drinks a lot

  • Vetinfo

    By: Erika Raines El Segundo, CA

    Replied on 04/19/2011

    The steroid injections and the tablets should be about the same as far as side effects go. The main factors affecting the amount and severity of side effects with steroids are the dose given and the length of time the animal has been receiving the steroids. Neither of these are likely to be different with the injections as you will still be treating the same problem. The injections will likely be more hassle (although with the difficulty pilling, this is debatable), and your cat may grow to resent being handled, but many diabetic cats and cats with kidney failure receive daily injections with few ill effects on their behavior. -Erika, DVM

More Questions on Hormone and Endocrine

  • Hyperthyroid and early kidney disease problems

    My cat (16 years old) was losing weight & eating a lot. They said she had Tubular Nucrosis as there were CAST found in the urinalysis. Her blood levels were as follows: Glucose 3.7, Creatinine 41, Potassium 3.4, NaK Ratio 45, Neutrophils 86.5. She is on Tapozole & Forticor both 14 pill 1xday. Recently she has had trouble getting up & has tremors as her legs give out. I started giving her 125mg day of glucosamine. Do you have any advice on the blood levels, dosage & leg issues?

  • Trying to get a cat on medications to eat more and gain weight?

    how can i get a diagnosed hyper thyroid cat on medications to eat more and gain weight? i have my female cat who has lost from 11 lbs to 6lbs in one year......she is 9 years old and is on hyper thyroid meds and still has diarea and not gaining weight one week on meds so far worried

  • My cat was diagnosed with hyperthyroidism in May.

    When we started medicating him, he got 1/2 5mg tab of Methimazole 2 time a day. After 2 weeks, dose increased to 2 tabs 2 times a day. He had gone from 14-9 pounds -has regained 1 1/2 pounds. He also has a heart murmer. His energy & muscle increased. His breathing went from 60 breaths/min -to normal-about 38. In the last week or so, his breath rate has again increased to about 48-50 breaths/min. His energy level has decreased again. He doesn't seem in pain. Your help is greatly appreciated.

  • Why doesn't double thyroidectomy cause hypothyroid problems in cats?

    I am aware that double thyroidectomy is an option for treatment of hyperthyroid in cats. I have read that care must be taken not to damage the parathyroid glands and that makes perfect sense. However, I can't find any information explaining why there are no problems with hypothyroidism. Please can you shed some light on this? Thanks

  • Info on overactive cat thyroid?

    My cat has an overactive thyroid and is on medication. Please can you explain this condition and prognosis please.

  • See all questions in Hormone and Endocrine

Please do not use our site to attempt to diagnose or treat your pet. Your veterinarian is the best source of health advice for an individual pet.

Please do use our site to become better informed about the medical problems your pet may have. We will do our best to ensure that information presented is accurate and up-to-date. The most current information will be at the top of each page. Remember that veterinarians often disagree about the best treatments for pets. There are often several perfectly acceptable ways to treat the same condition. Just ask a lot of questions!

For all emergency situations, please contact your local Emergency Pet Clinic or on-call Veterinarian. Answers are not provided in real time. We can not guarantee an answer to every question, nor can we provide timely responses to urgent questions in many instances.