Pain control in acute IVDD

[Guest guest]

Hi,

I do emergency veterinary work and have been trying to add to my treatment of the acute disc dog. I have occasionally run into one that is incredibly painful even on multiple pain meds. For instance, I saw a friend's 8 yr boxer with a tentative diagnosis of IVDD (matching history, rads, no advanced diagnostics - money an issue). She was on Tramadol, Prednisone, Traumeel and warm compressing before I saw her. On the above she was so painful she wouldn't lay down, was having numerous muscle spasms, and panting continuously. I added gentle massage and traction, cold lasered some spasming muscles (and sent him with an LED laser to continue at home), and doubled his tramadol dose. Although I didn't with this dog (a long story), I have also used methocarbamol as an additional medication in the pain control arsenal. Any other thoughts? This dog was a week out, but I have seen several present in the 2-7 day range with poor pain control on rimadyl or prednisone and tramadol. Specialty referral is generally not an option.

Thanks for any additional ideas.

Polazzi, DVM