Ascites in cats is inflammatory in nature and is caused by the accumulation of fluid in the body of the animal. The disease, also called abdominal dropsy, is not primary, because it is the result of protracted diseases. Often it causes problems with protein and water-salt metabolism, physical inactivity, various liver diseases and impaired blood circulation. If you do not start treatment of ascites on time, the likelihood of cardiovascular failure is high. Lack of therapy is fatal.
Description of the disease
Ascites in cats is a chronic disease. It is associated with difficult resorption of peritoneal fluid into the circulatory system, as a result of which it accumulates in the peritoneum.
This disease is quite dangerous, so treatment should be started as soon as possible. The development of the disease is individual, sometimes the volume of transudate can increase to 2 liters per day.
Most often, ascites of the abdominal cavity occurs in elderly cats, exhausted and exhausted.
Causes of occurrence
Ascites in cats has a rather large list of causes. Still, you should be more careful about animals leading a sedentary lifestyle. Experts have noticed that cats walking on the street are less likely to suffer from this disease. In addition, renal and heart failure leads to accumulation of fluid in the body of the animal. Weak immunity and disorders in the endocrine system can lead to the same result.
Most likely, the dropsy will be in an animal having the following problems:
- Violation of water-salt and protein metabolism.
- Increased sodium concentration.
- Oncological diseases.
- Excess weight.
It is worth noting that a high concentration of salts in the blood can occur when animals eat excessively salty foods and when they feed it with cheap feed containing large amounts of sodium.
Symptoms
Some diseases in animals are almost asymptomatic, while others have a clear clinical picture. The ascites in a cat also belongs to the second category. Symptoms of this disease are as follows:
- Symmetrical protrusion of the peritoneum on the sides.
- Labored breathing.
- Dullness, ruffled coat.
- Shortness of breath.
- Anemia and yellowness of the mucous membranes.
- Swelling of the extremities, the base of the auricles, chest and perineum.
The veterinarian, in order not to confuse ascites with peritonitis, will analyze the fluid that has accumulated inside the abdominal cavity. In addition, unlike peritonitis, with dropsy, body temperature does not increase.
If a large volume of fluid accumulates in the peritoneum, it is difficult to mix ascites with other diseases. To make sure that this is a dropsy, it is necessary to put the animal in an upright position, taking it by the front legs. If the stomach "stacks" down, becoming like a pear, we can safely say that it is ascites. In cats, the disease of which is only developing, the stomach will not be so large, and the general state of health is quite stable. However, with the course of pathology, the condition becomes less satisfactory: appetite disappears, apathy sets in. Later, vomiting, constipation or diarrhea, flatulence, and breathing become more frequent. Sometimes the temperature may rise.
Diagnostics
To find out whether ascites can be cured in a cat, you need to make sure that she is suffering from this disease. To do this, if one or more of the symptoms described earlier appears, the animal must be taken to the veterinarian. To establish a diagnosis, a specialist will conduct the following tests:
- find out what diseases the animal has, how long ago and how strongly the symptoms of ascites have manifested;
- conduct an external examination necessary in this situation;
- will do a urine and blood test;
- direct the animal to radiography and / or ultrasound of the abdominal cavity.
Treatment
Ascites in cats can be cured, but it must be remembered that the disease is secondary. This means that it is necessary to tackle the stabilization or stabilization of the problem that caused its appearance.
Surgical intervention during the illness is practically not discussed. They resort to this procedure only in extreme, especially neglected cases. Conservative treatment, maintaining the condition of the animal is a general rule in the treatment of this disease.
The most common treatment procedure is fluid excretion. This is done through a puncture in the abdominal wall. In addition, it is necessary to monitor the amount of sodium consumed by the animal. At the same time, with the help of diuretics, the excretion of sodium in the urine is enhanced, which allows to reduce the volume of fluid retained in the peritoneum.
Medication
Currently, doctors do not have at their disposal preparations that would be suitable for intensive and long-term treatment of ascites (this applies not only to animal diseases, but also to people). This is primarily due to the fact that the use of any of them leads to a significant loss of potassium. Prescribing high doses of a diuretic can lead to encephalopathy, which is certainly dangerous.
Diuretics that help preserve potassium can cause dishormonal disorder. Potassium-preserving drugs are ineffective relative to those in which it is consumed significantly. The use of these drugs is possible only in combination. At the same time, it is necessary to limit salt intake. Tests in humans have shown that Lazartan is an excellent remedy for ascites, but this drug is difficult to use in veterinary medicine.
Pumping fluid
Medication does not stop ascites in cats. How to treat this disease in another way? As already mentioned, it is possible to remove fluid from the peritoneum through a puncture. The danger of this process is that the accumulating liquid is not at all useless. Its loss can lead to death as a result of hypoxia and venous return. In addition, when it is excreted, important substances for life are lost: amino acids, immune complexes, electrolytes and proteins. This can cause a whole range of negative consequences.
Thus, an animal in which ascitic fluid was removed must compensate for the loss of nutrients. This is done either by the introduction of albumin, or by reinfusion of ascitic transudate. This procedure is mainly done in a hospital setting. To the returned fluid add heparin in a ratio of 1: 1. Within two or three days it is administered intravenously. You can store the liquid in the refrigerator at a temperature of 3-4 degrees Celsius. It is important to remember that this liquid can be infected with bacteria and toxins. If such suspicions appear, it is necessary to carry out cleaning by separation and use antibiotics. However, this situation does not occur so often - in about 5-10% of cases.
Fluid excretion is justified and justified; in animals after this procedure, the chances of not only prolonging life, but also, in some cases, remission, increase.