Regenerative therapy is high on our list of treatments that were most beneficial for Jasmine.
On a gut level, this approach made sense to me from the first time I’ve heard about it and I couldn’t be happier we decided to take that path.
Jasmine received stem cell therapy repeatedly and we treated Cookie’s partial CCL tears with platelet-rich plasma.
Jasmine’s story
Jasmine’s health challenges were many—the latest being acute front left leg lameness. Because of the great results we had with stem cell treatment for her in the past, we reached for that option again.
Even though this time things didn’t go exactly as we expected—Jasmine seemed to have gone through what is referred to as a healing crisis, the ultimate results were more than favorable.
More information: What Is A Healing Crisis: First Time For Everything—Is That What This Was?
After a rough weekend
After the very rough weekend, on Monday morning, when Jasmine first got up, she did, that without difficulty. She then went out and came back, looking very good. Was the ordeal over?
After the recent roller coaster, we were reluctant to believe what we were seeing. Should we expect a disaster?
Veterinary follow-up
We arrived at the vet’s office bright an early. He came out to meet us, expecting to see a very lame dog. But that was not what barged out of the bus to greet him.
He examined Jasmine thoroughly and found the joints cool and happy. The left elbow already exhibited an increase in the range of motion and lubrication!
Marked improvement
There is a marked improvement in the joints from their pre-treatment state.
The right elbow seems to have an injection bruise which should be self-limiting. Jasmine’s vet seemed very pleased with the amount of progress the joints have made.
The iliopsoas and hip muscles are quite angry and might have accounted for most of the lameness of the rear end.
These muscles had been bothering Jasmine in the past and might have got aggravated by the rolling from side to side during injection of the joints, or by compensating for the sore elbow(s).
The situation Jasmine’s vet got to see this morning was very different from what we have dealt with over the weekend.
Was all the lameness caused by manipulating of the joints in order to get the injections in their precise locations and the act of injecting them itself, or was it indeed some kind of a healing crisis type of event?
I guess we will never know for sure.
It might have been a healing crisis.
Judging by what was happening over the past few days, I would say it might have been [a healing crisis].
Apparently, whether or not a healing crisis might occur, would depend on two factors. How much healing there needs to happen, and whether or not the body has the resources to mount such an aggressive response.
From today’s examination, Jasmine’s vet feels that the angry iliopsoas were the source of most of the weekend anxiety. But he couldn’t have seen Jasmine during her worst lameness, which involved the elbow to a degree that Jasmine had a hard time to bear any weight on it at all.
The picture over the weekend was a very different one from the picture today.
Knowing is always better than not knowing
I think understanding what exactly did Jasmine go through is important. Whether the complete puzzle can be put together without Jasmine’s vet having been able to examine her during those days, that is a question.
I feel, that regardless of the angry muscles, a healing crisis is as good of an explanation as any. Could all that happened have simply been from the stress the joints underwent, being manipulated and injected? Perhaps.
Unfortunately hubby and I were the only ones who actually witnessed the whole thing.
Could the muscles have been behind all of the mobility issues Jasmine went through? Personally, I am not seeing that.
For us, of course, the main thing is that the joints presented as very happy today.
We will make an appointment with Jasmine’s physical therapist to deal with the muscles.
I do believe, though, that it would be beneficial to have been able to figure out what exactly went on, should somebody else face such a situation.
That might not be possible to determine with any certainty. I do feel, though, that some kind of a healing crisis type of event remains a possible explanation.
Take-home point
A take-home point? Don’t set up a major treatment for Friday before a long weekend! Duh!
The silly thing is that the worst horror Jasmine’s gone through in the past, a result of drug-induced hyperthermia (and she was just going in for an x-ray!) also happened over the weekend. That was three years ago, and we swore to ourselves not to ever do any procedures or even diagnostics on Friday. We stuck to this rule for three years.
The reason we broke the rule this time was our zeal to help Jasmine as soon as possible.
We wanted those stem cells in her joints at the earliest date possible so they could start doing their thing. The treatments she had in the past were uneventful. So we figured it would go the same way this time also. Should have known better, huh? Gotta respect Murphy’s law. EVERY time.
Has your dog ever gone through a healing crisis type of event?
Of course, in her excitement of her vet coming to meet her at the bus, Jasmine stumbled on her way down the steps. So I’m hoping she didn’t aggravate those sore muscles further. *sigh We shall see tonight.
Related articles:
Our Favorite Veterinary Treatments: Treatments Jasmine Benefited From The Most
Jasmine’s Acute Lameness
Further reading:
What Is Stem Cell Therapy: Digging Deeper—The Science Behind Adipose-Derived Stem Cell Therapy