Reflex dyssynergia - Page 1

Hi everyone,

I posted on here a few months ago, seeking advice as our  ~1 year old gsd 'Murphy' had been diagnosed with reflex dyssynergia - a neurological condition in which the bladder sphincter muscles cannot relax to allow the passage of urine. We also had problems with a lack of appetite and vomiting.

I wanted to post an update as Murphy's treatment has been fully effective and we have our happy bouncy boy back. There seems to be very little information available about a positive outcome with this disorder - the improvement that we've seen,shows that treatment can work in some cases.

The side effects were very upsetting initially as we had him on a dosage of 3 phenoxybenzamine and 6 scullcap and valerian. He was very lethargic and unhappy - we also had to catheterise him twice a day, at home, for the first two weeks in order to avoid his bladder overstretching.....it was such an exhausting and worrying time. We were up throughout the night with him on a number of occasions as he was very restless - wanting to pass urine but not being able to do so ......... so glad we persevered though! It took approximately 2 weeks for the medication to take full effect and Murphy has been doing great since then.

We've gradually been reducing his dosage and he is now on 2 scullcap and valerian and 2 phenoxybenzamine. The phenoxybenzamine acts to relax the smooth muscle of the bladder sphincter and scullcap and valerian acts to relax the striated muscle of the bladder sphincter - both muscle types are not always affected. In Murphys case the scullcap and valerian seem to be needed as when we tried reducing the dose to one tablet he began to have very slight problems straining again which were quickly resolved by increasing the dosage to 2 tablets again. We haven't tried reducing the phenoxybenzamine further as of yet - will wait another month before we do. We did also get him neutered as testosterone acts to increase the contraction of the muscle sphincter.

Side effects of the medication do not seem to be a problem now. He isn't lethargic at all - loves his walks and would play at fetching his kong for me to throw, all day  long if he could.  He does get a runny nose occasionally but this doesn't bother him.

We also had problems with a lack of appetite and vomiting which were present before we noticed the difficulty passing urine - the vet feels that these are unrelated to the reflex dyssynergia. We have been feeding him z/d prescription food for a few months now. I know this is a food that many do not rate but he is doing extremely well on it. We haven't had any vomiting for around 3 months and he has a great appetite now. Infact, he's put on approximately 7kg ...he's still slim but not worryingly so.

The following link may help someone - it's information given by a vet I contacted online,about Murphys problems. I'm not sure that everyone would consider this a reliable source but  the details given may be worth looking into further.

http://www.justanswer.com/dog-health/42azx-11-month-male-gsd-diagnosed-reflex-dyssynergia.html


Thank you for your suggestions and support, everyone who responded to my previous posts - they did help us a lot. Hope you don't mind me posting the update - hope it might help someone else.


**edited to correct the link

Thanks for the update and really pleased to hear that Murphy is doing so well

Thank you Hulamor

I know the post will be of no interest to most, but I was contacted privately through the database by someone whos dog has just been diagnosed with the same problem - I hope some of the information given, might help them or others in the same situation. I know it would have helped me - this is a relatively rare disorder and limited information about a positive outcome was available when I searched. At the time of diagnosis and before the medication took full effect I really thought that we were going to lose him. The vet hadn't seen the condition before but warned us that most dogs are euthanased. Information I found online also agreed that the prognosis is very poor.
.........thank goodness we persevered - during the first few weeks I did doubt whether we were making the right choice for him. It's still early days but we've had a happy, active boy for a few months now.....fingers crossed that's the way he stays.
 

I am happy your boy is back home bouncing and hope he remains. I wanted to do more reading on the actual prognosis before commenting further .

Were other neurological factors found or looked into? And does your dog have any other conditions that you know of that can prompt or ad to such a thing? For instance dwarfism, thyroid, diabetes or other endocrine malfunctions that can effect the system and neurological functions? JUST curious and thanks for the link1

Debi
www.sherman-ranch.us

I am so very happy that Murphy is getting back to his old self and I wish you all the very best for the future and hope he keeps in good health

Hi everyone,

I am an owner of 7.5 year old male Dalmatian who has been diagnosed with Reflex dyssynergia - unfortunately it happened whilst we were overseas and it was a long process before the above diagnosis was reached. Like everyone else, we thought that Jeb was going to have to be put down - he was treated for a Urinary Tract Infection due to 'dribbling'  and not urinating, then x-rays, then ultra-sound, abnormal cells found however, no cancer or masses were noted, but they were suspected. Then finally a biopsy to confirm if a carcinoma or urate stones were found - unfortunately the biopsy was inconclusive and things were looking grim - BUT then the vet got a call from a colleague and the above diagnosis was discussed. Suffice to say - he is on the same/similiar drugs and its working like a charm - back to his normal self. We had nearly given up hope - so my message to all is don't! Glad to have our dog back,
Cheers,

GG

ronnie1 great news on murphy good luck

Ronnie1 -  Great news !!!   So happy for you, your family and Murphy , and know that your post is important !  You have probably helped someone else with your story on how to combat this awful disorder.   Thank you !

Lisa

Reflex dyssynergia

Re: gsd Murphy

 Hello Ronnie

 We have a 4 yr old border collie Rex whose symptoms are very similar to Murphy’s and we have found your posted information extremely helpful. Our dog started with sickness and diarrhoea, then inability to pass urine. X-rays showed no ‘stones’ in the bladder, so our vet started him on a course of datrium (to relax the external sphincter). This has had no effect, so he has now been put on phenoxbenzamine 2 tablets twice a day (to relax the internal sphincters) – 4 days in and no improvement so far. Understand prazosin is a similar more up-to-date medication.

 
Rex is very lethargic and a bit wobbly on his legs, his appetite is poor and he even has a very congested/runny nose, which I note you say Murphy still has. We are catheterising him twice a day. Our vet is excellent and diagnosed dyssynergia which led me to your online details. We are desperately hoping that the outcome will be what you experienced with Murphy, as Rex is a wonderful boy and we love him to bits.

 We really hope that Murphy is still doing well and would be very grateful to hear of the current situation, as your posting was back in January – is he still on phenoxbenzamine? Thank you for the posted details, including the further link information.

 From sibirica

11 March 2011