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Re: [RC] Spinal tap/dilemia/Rascal - SABRINA KOHOUTEK

Laurie and Rascal,

I have been reading all the e-mails about Rascal.  It breaks my heart.
However, I am sure with your love, strength, and due diligence, Rascal will
be just fine.  In regards to your vet.  None of us knows everything, and if
there are any doubts about his diagnosis, go for a 2nd opinion.  I am all
for 2nd opinions.  They have saved me more than once.  My 5 year old son,
Evan has worn glasses since he was 12 months old.  He has an awesome doctor
that we see every 6 months.  About 1x a year his vision gets a little bit
worse and we have to increase his prescription.  It does get a little scary
because with amblyopia (which is what he has) they can eventually go blind
in 1 eye without proper treatment ie: eye patching, proper lenses.

At one point my X-employer provided us with a Kaiser plan.  So, we thought
as much as we love Dr. Granet, Let's try out the Kaiser pediatric
ophthalmologist and see how he is.  We go to see him and he does a really
short version of an eye exam, and proceeds to tell me that Evan is blind in
1 eye.  My WORST nightmare!  He says that his vision is 20?300 and 20/60.
He prescribed new glasses for this vision.  Meantime, we are all confused as
to how it could have gotten so bad in just the past 6 months.  Not to
mention the emotional mess I and our whole family was. You see, kids are so
good at compensating that we wouldn't know anyways.

I called Dr. Granet immediately, he squeezed him in 2 days later ( it
normally takes about 6 weeks to get in to see him).   Dr. Granet does his
normal thorough exam, has 2 other doctors double check his results and then
tells me that Evan's vision is the same as it was 6 months ago. 20-40 and
20-50.  GREAT NEWS!!  Basically, the Kaiser doctor bored Evan with his
tests. So, he didn't pay attention as closely, and kind of goofed off. He
wasn't serious with his answers about what he saw.  Dr. Granet knows that
with kids you have to keep them interested with jokes, pictures, he uses
animals and toys instead of letters for his tests.  The kids laugh, are so
interested in what he has to say that they don't lose focus, not even for a
minute.  He is an awesome doctor and I will never take Evan anywhere else
again.

Since then, we have gotten more aggressive with his treatment, more
patching, and he plays this computer divergence game on the computer that is
helping strengthen the muscles in his eyes.  The last visit, his vision
improved to 20-30 and 20-40.  Good enough to drive.  We are hopeful that he
will be 20-20 one day.


If you are not comfortable and trusting of the results a doctor gives you,
go for a second opinion.  If I had taken that doctors opinion and filled
that prescription he gave Evan, He would have gone blind just from wearing
those glasses.

Sabrina




----- Original Message -----
From: "Laurie Durgin" <ladurgin@xxxxxxx>
To: <ridecamp@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
Sent: Thursday, May 15, 2003 4:20 PM
Subject: [RC] Spinal tap/dilemia/Rascal


    I was about to order the drugs--but my daughter /her trainers and
others
have me wondering. I 'm  sort of poised on a cliff. Enough people said are
you sure your vet is competent. My farrier says he is good at sewing stuff
up and average stuff, but if I ever have a real lamness problem etc. I
should callhis older wiser vet. My Daughter n her trainers (who also raise
horses think I should hold off on the Marquis because something else
mimics
the disease and if I give Marquis it could kill him. (He is presently on
the
sulfa, anti-malarial type drugs, have enough for a week, the 90 day
treatment.)Also they don't agree that you can't get an uncontaiminated
tap.
My vet said ti would be 350$, but said it was /hard to get
uncontaiminated.
Trainer said she got a tap at U. of Athens 6 mos. ago for 150$. But that
is
a 2-3 hour trailer distance one way.His right rear is wobbly, like he
circleshis leg or it's disconnected . Not every step, but he isn't his
surefooted self at all. I'm not sure a long trailer ride would be good. .
.
   I have read of horses not given anti inflamitories when they needed it
.Of  giving shots and ivermectin/quest and them crashing. And many think
there may be an ulcer link.(that may be how the protozoa cross the
blood/brain barrier.)
So my daughter wants me to wait till she contacts her vets and see if what
they recoommend. (They are the vets for the  A circut  around her .Seems
the
diagnosis is  clinical symptoms  polus spinal tap at end? and  response to
drugs.So you may not really know for sure? And i've heard of lots of
mistakedn diagnosis.
  I guess it is because I really am not 100% comfident in my vet. My
farrier
told me of a mistake he made years ago.(but doesn't everyone?)
    Well back to the net to do more research. . . .  Unfortunately I have
had bad experience wtih Doctors  being wrong or withholding info. So I am
skeptical anyway.  Laurie and Rascal

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=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
Ridecamp is a service of Endurance Net, http://www.endurance.net.
Information, Policy, Disclaimer: http://www.endurance.net/Ridecamp
Subscribe/Unsubscribe http://www.endurance.net/ridecamp/logon.asp

Ride Long and Ride Safe!!

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Replies
[RC] Spinal tap/dilemia/Rascal, Laurie Durgin