Willows has launched a canine and feline diabetes mellitus clinic to coincide with the launch of SENVELGO®.
The newly launched clinic aims to support chronic or newly diagnosed diabetics, where decision making or clinical progress has been challenging.
As part of the clinic, Willows’ internal medicine team will provide support in using and familiarising practitioners with the new feline mellitus drug SGLT2 inhibitor SENVELGO® (velagliflozin oral solution), to manage blood glucose levels in feline patients without needing injectable insulin.
Mark Dunning, RCVS and European specialist in small animal internal medicine and head of internal medicine at Willows, said: “Our new diabetes clinic will provide access to Specialist input for diabetic cases that our referring vets are requiring additional support with. We are launching this to coincide with the new SGLT2 inhibitor for cats.
“We felt this was timely given that ‘when and how’ to use any new drug can lead to uncertainties for many primary care practitioners and the clinic allows us offer direct help and guidance on the cases that will benefit.”
For cats, the real benefit of SGLT2 inhibitors is that they are administered orally once a day in a liquid form instead of injectable insulin, making the treatment much easier to administer.
Cats can be started on the SGLT2 inhibitor regardless of the stage of treatment or the amount of time they have been on it. A note of caution means not every cat will respond to it, so some may still require insulin treatment, this will be determined as part of the clinic’s role.
Mark said: “Until now, injectable insulin was considered the mainstay of treatment for feline diabetes despite most cats suffering with type II disease. Crucially, the new oral SGLT2 inhibitor lowers cats’ blood glucose concentration without needing injectable insulin, offering greater opportunities for successful management of feline diabetes.”
Willows’ diabetes clinic may represent a single visit for many cases; however, it can also provide multi-step treatment plans with follow-up visits over longer periods of time.
A detailed referral report (and specific owner report) will be provided after each visit, along with an ongoing management plan for the referring vet for continuity of care. Willows will also actively collaborate with the referring vet going forward to ensure the best outcome for each case.
The team would recommend that for both canine and feline diabetics, routine follow-up checks are carried out every three to six months depending on how stable they are. This will help to avoid unexpected deterioration in their condition.
