A Very Conjunctivitis Christmas: The Photo Essay and Modest Proposal for the Veterinary Industrial Complex

It all started in October...

"Humph, what's that on your eye?
Could it be a stye?
But then again, your lids are swelling -
What ever could it be telling?
Let me see your little head...
Oh my, your eyes look red."

After testing for lesions, glaucoma and tear production (twice each!), there seemed to be nothing obviously wrong! He was treated for conjuctivitis, then infection, and allergies.


Humphrey tried everything non-invasive! Conjunctivitis drops, allergy drops, cortesone drops.....

Everyone was stumped, including the vet and Humph's pack.

Hanukkah came and went, and there was no real change in Humph's eyes.

Humph made his way southwest along the 401 to get some answers, and had a scenic detour through Chatham when a strech of the highway was shut down.

He made his first trip abroad to see a specialist in Michigan! Obamadogcare meant a reasonaby-priced facility loaded with board-cerified veterinary dermatologists, opthamologists and more. Not to mention a fancy coffee bar on site. Wow. More tests to rule out mites, fungus and other things.
The diagnosis: idiopathic blepharitis. The treatment: Atopica, which the specialist described as "a special class of anti-inflammatory"...

Humphrey's guardian nearly hit the ceiling when she researched Atopica, which is the brand name for veterinary-grade cyclosporine. She learned it's not an anti-inflammatory, but an immuno-suppressant prescribed for lupus, organ transplants (anti-rejection) and severe cases of psoriasis in humans. And the side effects are frightening! Kidney damage! Vomiting! Increased suceptability to infection!

 

Meanwhile, Humphrey busied himself decorating the big Christmas tree...

...wrapping and guarding fabulous, shiny gifts for loved ones big and small...

...and of course applying his project management skills to the flawless execution of a Christmas meal.

It was a white Christmas after all!

Then came a Christmas miracle! With constant care and unfettered ocular hygeine and some cyclosporine, his condition improved a bit!



And the holiday ended with the entire pack together!

Humphrey also ended the holiday season with a modest proposal. The prescription of cyclosporine for what is essentially dermatitis of they eye (with no damaging consequences) seemed to him like killing an ant with a baseball bat.

Is it worth the increased risk of disease and cancer, the massive strain on the kidneys, and the high incidence of really bad side effects to alleviate a bit of itching that can be managed topically (in people, at least)? He began to wonder if the problem of veterninary clinics selling and dispensing (for profit!)  pharmaceuticals was a conflict of interst.

He considered the facts. There are about 21,000 pet-focused veterinary practices in the US alone according to the American Veterinary Medical Association. In the US, veterinary care spending increased by 40% between 2002 and 2007 – but the amount spent on pet drugs in that same timeframe increased by 52% (source: Fountain Agriculture). That amounts to about $3.5 billion dollars on pet (not agricultural!) medication in the US ! This figure does not include the additional, estimated $261 million in sales of over-the-counter, retail pet medication. No wonder Pfizer can count on pets for 40% of its revenue (as noted in a report from the Action Group on Erosion, Technology and Concentration).  Again, that represents pet products - not including those from agricultural animals. Among the choices in its product line are Slentrol (for canine anti-obesity treatment) and Anipryl (for canine dementia). Of course, they are (luckily) the makers of anti-depressant Zoloft, which guardians might need in light of the costs and heartache associated with companion animal illness!

Of course treating a case of blepharitis with over-the-counter allergy drops and thrice-daily washing is not so good for big pharma's bottom line, nor the revenues of veterinary practices.

Herein lies the modest proposal: would it be such a bad thing if veterinary practices were forbidden from the sale of retail pharmaceuticals? Would that result in better "informed consent" (such as letting the patient know about potential side-effects and accurately explaining that cyclosporine is a powerful immuno-suppressant, not at all "its own class of anti-inflammatory")?

It might be time to take a regulatory page from that of the human healthcare industry.

Happy holidays to all...and best wishes for a healthy and happy new year!

Humph's big day at glam Willowdale hotspot, Bayview Village.

"Well behaved women rarely make history."
Thank you Humphrey!