At high doses corticosteroids suppress immune functions, making them useful in the myriad of auto-immune conditions encountered in dogs. Corticosteroids are also used to treat the effects of trauma and shock, and can sometimes make the difference between life and death in such situations. Even so, corticosteroids are often used to treat injuries in athletes. If you are a rabid football fan like me, you have had the nerve-wracking experience of watching a player with a neck injury being worked on by the medical crew. Current research suggests that the rapid intravenous administration of a certain corticosteroid can make the difference between permanent paralysis and regaining the ability to walk in some of these injuries.
Steroids are a large and diverse group of substances.
They are used to great benefit in both animals and people, but can also be horribly misused with catastrophic results. If your dog is on steroids, please be sure that you have a complete understanding of what the treatment is trying to accomplish, and what side effects could occur. There are many diseases in canine medicine that we could not treat without steroids, but their use must be judicious. If you have questions about this or any other pet health topic, please drop me a note in our Pet Health message forum. Dr. Wayman's biography is available online.