HELP

Is there anybody out there who can give some information on pulmonary intestrial disease, my 3 year old staffordshire bull terrior has been diagnosed with the above, at the moment they do not know which sort? the xray's showed very bad white patches and he is having trouble breathing and a very bad cough. The vet has prescribed steriods and will review him again in 10 days time, he has advised me that it will never be cured but they may be able to control it with medication. Is there anybody who can advise me what the outlook is likley to be I fee so sorry for my dog struggling to breath, but the vet assures me that he is not any pain apart from a continual sore throat from coughing which I have been giving him cough medicine that I give the children but doesn't seem to make any difference.

Many Thanks

Niki

Hi Niki...did you mean interstitial?
Unfortunatly, diseases of this nature are not often completely cured, but they can be treated.
Basically, there is several different types of pulmonary disease.
Pulmonary tissue reacts to foreign bodies or infections by creating scar tissue in an attempt to toughen the fragile alveolar walls, or by having these thin alveolar walls rupture. When alveoli rupture, they can collapse into small areas of scarred lung tissue, or they can form larger chambers (emphysema) in the lung. In addition to reducing the surface area for gas exchange, the infected alveoli cause the lung to lose elasticity and make respiration more difficult. More effort must go into inhalation which is what you say your staffy is experiencing. It will be hard to breath normally for him. What tablets is he on?
As your vet said, it is controllable with medication,...but...in many cases, extreme excersise is not advisable.
I wouldnt over worry yourself in the mean time. You say you have to go back to the vet in 10 days. Try to keep a diary (mental or written) on your dogs progress. Keep an eye on his breathing, try to pinpoint when it gets worse, and also, when it is not too bad.
steph
x