Blue Tongue Skink ? cause of illness

[Zoo Nanny]

What's happened so far.
Monday night saw a small amount of mucus in one corner of mouth, less than 1/4 inch. He had eaten, pooped and moving around fine. I watched him for quite a while thinking his breathing may have been a little faster than the norm. He is currently shedding
Tuesday morning still shedding, looks good, breathing normal no mucus ate breakfast no issues
Tuesday night again small amount of mucus in one corner of his mouth. His breathing increased after handling and he appeared distressed. Calmed after about 20 minutes.
Wednesday morning breathing appears fast again, no mucus noted.
Got an appointment for 2:50 so I took him to work with me maintained his temps in tub. Still appears to be breathing heavier.
Xrays and blood work. He stayed at the vets while I returned to work. Back to the vets at 7. Xrays normal, blood work being sent to University of Miami.
His throat is almost entirely occluded causing the breathing issue. No masses seen on xray. Vet is consulting with other herp vets. He was started on antibiotics IM for 5 days. Vet showed me how to do the injections so he could go home. Concern is possible organ failure or hopefully an abcess beginning unding the chin which is not visable yet. Vets did try to aspirate under chin but it was negative for fluids. Abdomen is also bloated at this time. Because of his advanced unknown age it's uncommon to see them in vets office. He feels that he is a New Guinea Skink not a Northern. This confirms the first vet in 2002 statement of wild caught because he was loaded with parasites and mites. Unusual so they said to see in captive bred individuals.
Does anyone have any ideas of what may be happening or things that the vet could look at or the name of another herp vet that treats blue tongues?
This is happening all so fast I'm at a loss on what to do. I've bumped up his temps a little which the vet approved.

[marvelfreak]

Wish i could help. Got my fingers cross that he make a full recover from what ever it is.

[Zoo Nanny]

Things are not going well. I spoke with another vet who feels he has all the classic symptoms of heart disease. I shared all of the history and test results with her. We are going to continue on the antibiotics and possibly try a second later in the week just on the off chance that the heart issue is secondary to an infection that is not showing up in the test results.

[Starbuck]

sorry to hear that

while it's terrible to potentially be losing a pet, i think you deserve some credit for getting him to an advanced age where heart disease even becomes a potential diagnosis. So many reptiles in the hobby never get to a geriatric stage due to improper husbandry/diets etc... Obviously i'm hoping for the best for you, but will be following this story closely!
Fingers still crossed that he turns around

[Zoo Nanny]

Thank you for your support. Today is not a good day for him. He ate a little but is now breathing very labored. He has one more dose of antibiotic tonight. I am going to call the vet tomorrow to see if I can get the second type of antibiotic early. This will give him 3 days of the second ab prior to seeing the vet on Thursday.

[Starbuck]

if it truly is heart failure, you may want to ask the vet about a diuretic such as lasix (i have no idea if this drug can be used in reptiles). It is not a cure, just treats the symptoms of heart failure by aiding in osmoregulation in the body. It could make his breathing less labored and make him more comfortable...
It is typically used in geriatric mammals (my dog was on it), as well as racehorses to enhance performance.

[Zoo Nanny]

Thank you. I have been talking with my vet friend all weekend. She has spoken with a reptile vet that works for her. They said the same thing. Lasik has been used on snakes by this reptile vet with positive results. He said that although it would not cure the heart it would make him more comfortable and give a bit more time.