Complete Care for Your Aging Cat - Amy Shojai [103]
Some cats may tolerate mild forms of the disease for five years or longer with few to no signs. About half of the cats that show signs of hypertrophic cardiomyopathy die within three months. Irregular blood flow leads to blood clots that typically form and lodge in the lower part of the aorta, the main artery supplying blood to the cat’s hind legs. When the blood supply is cut off, acute pain develops from muscle spasms in the hind leg muscles and the legs become paralyzed.
Senior Symptoms
Most cats first show difficulty breathing from fluid-filled lungs or fluid in the chest. When the heart can’t pump oxygen-rich blood adequately, the cat becomes depressed. Other signs include:
Tires easily
Weakness
Bluish tinge to the skin from lack of oxygen
Labored breathing
Loss of appetite
Hind limb paralysis and pain
Heart disease has a cascading effect on the whole body, and can lead to damage of other organs such as the kidneys, liver and lungs. Fluids collect when the body tries to compensate for reduced heart efficiency. Sodium and fluid are retained to increase blood volume, and blood vessels are constricted to increase blood pressure. Treating the high blood pressure can reverse heart-muscle damage.
When the left side of the heart fails, fluid collects in the lungs (pulmonary edema) and makes it hard to breathe. “Breathing problems and coughing can be a distinct and most significant clue, but they tend to be later findings,” says Rhonda L. Schulman, DVM, an internist at University of Illinois. When the right side of the heart fails, fluid fills the chest cavity (pleural effusion). Cats suffering from cardiomyopathy often have a heart murmur.
Bottom Line
Costs for diagnostic tests vary in different parts of the country, and the treatment depends on the specific requirements. Usually the medication itself is quite reasonable once the problem is diagnosed.
An echocardiogram costs in the $300 range
X-rays typically start at $50 to $75 and go up from there
Diagnosis
Simply listening with a stethoscope may detect a murmur or excessive fluid in the lungs, says Dr. Schulman. X-rays usually show an enlarged heart—the hypertrophic heart typically is shaped like a valentine. “You might see changes in the lungs consistent with fluid,” she says. Most veterinarians have X-ray machines in their offices and can make a general diagnosis.
An echocardiogram, or ultrasound of the heart, is the ideal way to diagnose heart disease. That requires specialized equipment veterinarians usually won’t have. Your veterinarian may refer you to a veterinary cardiologist or internist.
The echocardiogram tells the veterinarian a great deal, says Sheila McCullough, DVM, an internist at the University of Illinois, including how strongly the heart is able to contract. “It gives you a better idea of the heart chamber size, the thickness or thinness of the walls.” Thorough testing helps determine which medications will work best. “We often do re-echos after they’ve been put on the medication to see if they’re actually improving,” she says.
Feeding For Health
Your veterinarian may suggest a number of therapeutic diets designed to help cats with heart disease, including:
Hill’s Prescription Diet Feline h/d
IVD (Royal Canin) Select Care Feline Mature Formula
Purina Veterinary Diets, CV CardioVascular Formula
Treatment
Cats with cardiomyopathy can be helped with drugs that improve the heart's performance and reduce fluid accumulation. “There are some medications that are very similar to what people take with heart disease,” says Dr. Schulman. “Certain drugs work on how the heart cells communicate with one another,” she says. For example, calcium channel blockers or beta blockers can help slow the heart rate to give the heart more time to adequately fill. Heart patients can develop hypertension,