Amlodipine (Norvasc) for treating kidney failure / eye problems?
 

I'm aware that a few years ago a drug company was doing a study on the
effectiveness of Amlodipine in cats to treat kidney failure.

Amlodipine is (I believe) a treatment for high blood pressure, and
perhaps a reduction in blood pressure (even in cats with normal blood
pressure?) might be the reason why this drug seemed to be effective
for treating kidney failure.

Anyways, I was wondering if these amlodipine studies have been
completed and if Amlodipine has become a standard treatment for kidney
failure.

Seems that there are some good reasons for giving amlodipine in older
cats anyways - such as the prevention of eye problems. I found the
following material on the 'net and was wondering if vets would ever
prescribe amlodipine in older cats as a way to prevent kidney or eye
problems without specifically testing for high blood pressure (which
no vets seem to do anyways).

Basically, if I wanted to put my cat on amlodipine - more or less just
for the hell of it - what would be the down-side? Seems there are
some real benefits, and waiting for kidney or eye problems to present
themselves seems too late.

------------
The most common cause of sudden blindness in older cats is probably
hypertension (high blood pressure), usually associated with
hyperthyroidism, kidney disease, diabetes or some other systemic
illness. Optic neuritis does occur independently of hypertension. In
addition, glaucoma can cause blindness that seems to have a sudden
onset, even though it has quietly been causing damage for some time.
This is actually one of the causes of optic neuritis. Cats do not get
glaucoma as often as dogs do, but it is something else to consider.

Many vets (including us) do not have an in-clinic method of measuring
blood pressure. In that situation, I think that it is reasonable to
use medications to control blood pressure on the presumption that it
might be the problem, until it is clear that it is, or is not, part of
the problem. We use amlodipine (Norvasc Rx), usually 1/4 of a 2.5mg
tablet once a day.

http://www.vetinfo.com/cateye.html
-------------

I'm aware that a few years ago a drug company was doing a study on the
effectiveness of Amlodipine in cats to treat kidney failure.

Amlodipine is (I believe) a treatment for high blood pressure, and
perhaps a reduction in blood pressure (even in cats with normal blood
pressure?) might be the reason why this drug seemed to be effective
for treating kidney failure.

Anyways, I was wondering if these amlodipine studies have been
completed and if Amlodipine has become a standard treatment for kidney
failure.

I would think giving a cat Norvasc just for the hell of it is an extremely bad
idea. Norvasc is a calcium channel blocker that's used to treat high BP and
angina in humans. I'd think you're going to cause your cat's BP to become
dangerously low unless the cat is monitored by a vet.

Sherry

Seems that there are some good reasons for giving amlodipine in older
cats anyways - such as the prevention of eye problems. I found the
following material on the 'net and was wondering if vets would ever
prescribe amlodipine in older cats as a way to prevent kidney or eye
problems without specifically testing for high blood pressure (which
no vets seem to do anyways).

Basically, if I wanted to put my cat on amlodipine - more or less just
for the hell of it - what would be the down-side? Seems there are
some real benefits, and waiting for kidney or eye problems to present
themselves seems too late.

------------
The most common cause of sudden blindness in older cats is probably
hypertension (high blood pressure), usually associated with
hyperthyroidism, kidney disease, diabetes or some other systemic
illness. Optic neuritis does occur independently of hypertension. In
addition, glaucoma can cause blindness that seems to have a sudden
onset, even though it has quietly been causing damage for some time.
This is actually one of the causes of optic neuritis. Cats do not get
glaucoma as often as dogs do, but it is something else to consider.

Many vets (including us) do not have an in-clinic method of measuring
blood pressure. In that situation, I think that it is reasonable to
use medications to control blood pressure on the presumption that it
might be the problem, until it is clear that it is, or is not, part of
the problem. We use amlodipine (Norvasc Rx), usually 1/4 of a 2.5mg
tablet once a day.

http://www.vetinfo.com/cateye.html
-------------

I'm aware that a few years ago a drug company was doing a study on the
effectiveness of Amlodipine in cats to treat kidney failure.

Amlodipine is (I believe) a treatment for high blood pressure, and
perhaps a reduction in blood pressure (even in cats with normal blood
pressure?) might be the reason why this drug seemed to be effective
for treating kidney failure.

Anyways, I was wondering if these amlodipine studies have been
completed and if Amlodipine has become a standard treatment for kidney
failure.

I would think giving a cat Norvasc just for the hell of it is an extremely bad
idea. Norvasc is a calcium channel blocker that's used to treat high BP and
angina in humans. I'd think you're going to cause your cat's BP to become
dangerously low unless the cat is monitored by a vet.

Sherry

Seems that there are some good reasons for giving amlodipine in older
cats anyways - such as the prevention of eye problems. I found the
following material on the 'net and was wondering if vets would ever
prescribe amlodipine in older cats as a way to prevent kidney or eye
problems without specifically testing for high blood pressure (which
no vets seem to do anyways).

Basically, if I wanted to put my cat on amlodipine - more or less just
for the hell of it - what would be the down-side? Seems there are
some real benefits, and waiting for kidney or eye problems to present
themselves seems too late.

------------
The most common cause of sudden blindness in older cats is probably
hypertension (high blood pressure), usually associated with
hyperthyroidism, kidney disease, diabetes or some other systemic
illness. Optic neuritis does occur independently of hypertension. In
addition, glaucoma can cause blindness that seems to have a sudden
onset, even though it has quietly been causing damage for some time.
This is actually one of the causes of optic neuritis. Cats do not get
glaucoma as often as dogs do, but it is something else to consider.

Many vets (including us) do not have an in-clinic method of measuring
blood pressure. In that situation, I think that it is reasonable to
use medications to control blood pressure on the presumption that it
might be the problem, until it is clear that it is, or is not, part of
the problem. We use amlodipine (Norvasc Rx), usually 1/4 of a 2.5mg
tablet once a day.

http://www.vetinfo.com/cateye.html
-------------