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My brother's dog has been diagnosed with limbic epilepsy. He says the dog has been vomiting for 10 days. He was told the vomiting is a siezure. The dog is a mix of Yorkie and some other terrier. Can you tell me if this is curable?
Already Tried: Phenobarb, blood tests and xrays are unremarkable
Hello. If this dog has not had a neuro consult with a veterinary neurologist then I would do that before calling this Limbic Epilepsy. This is a tough call to make and we have to rule out all other causes of vomiting. This means running blood work, shooting x-rays and probably even getting biopsy samples of the intestines to rule out IBD (inflammatory bowel disease) and other GI diseases/ cancers. The treatment is not curative, but instead it's manageable. We treat like any other epilepsy. Start with Phenobarbital, and then add Potassium Bromide (KBr), Zonisamide or Keppra as needed. I would give Phenobarb 2-4 weeks. If no improvement, then I would add Keppra or Zonisamide. Phenobarb takes 2-3 weeks to reach therapeutic levels in the blood. Keppra and Zonisamide only take 2 days so they are nice to add if we need extra anti-seizure activity. I hope this helps, let me know if you have any other questions.
Experience: DVM, Emergency Veterinarian; BS (Physiology) Michigan State Univ