Used to be that a cat having a seizure had likely gotten into a toxin, had a metabolic reason causing the seizures, was having a possible drug reaction, had an infectious disease such as FIP, FELV, FIV, toxoplasmosis, or of course had a brain tumor. I have heard that more recently there have been a greater diagnosis of epilepsy in cats. Most often this issue is a canine one. A common scenario is that an approximately 2-year-old mixed breed dog with no prior medical issues presents for possible seizure activity and is later diagnosed with epilepsy.
- In a recent case in my clinic a
Used to be that a cat having a seizure had likely gotten into a toxin, had a metabolic reason causing the seizures, was having a possible drug reaction, had an infectious disease such as FIP, FELV, FIV, toxoplasmosis, or of course had a brain tumor. I have heard that more recently there have been a greater diagnosis of epilepsy in cats. Most often this issue is a canine one. A common scenario is that an approximately 2-year-old mixed breed dog with no prior medical issues presents for possible seizure activity and is later diagnosed with epilepsy.- In a recent case in my clinic a 2-year-old MN DSH cat (2 years seems to be the “magic number” for epilepsy) was presented for a possible seizure. The patient had no prior medical issues and had been completely happy and healthy up until this time.
- Upon triage the patient was found completely alert, ambulatory, but wide-eyed and slightly tachypneic. The owner had reported that nothing had been out of the ordinary for her cat, eating/drinking/litter box behavior was all normal. The cat had not been exposed to any known toxins, did not go outside, and was up to date on vaccinations. The cat had been sitting on the couch, began to tremble and shake, lost his urine and bowels, and then was paddling and vocalizing. According to the owner this lasted about 60 seconds, although any one who has ever witnessed a seizure will tell you it seemed like it lasted forever.
- Physical examination found the patient QAR, with a normal body temperature, there was no nystagmus in the eyes, or vitreous flare/retinal vessel cuffing which can be seen in the dry form of FIP. In house CBC/Chem was within normal limits.
- The patient was admitted for seizure watch observation for the day and had no other episodes, facial ticking or otherwise. The patient was discharged to the owner with a prescription of Phenobarital just to have on hand and the owner was advised to watch for any seizure activity, odd behaviors, or changes in mentation.
So at my hospital we have maybe two whole patients diagnosed with epilepsy out of all of the cats that we see (both of which not needing Phenobarbital). I was just wondering if anyone else has seen this more commonly in their practice and if there was any other drug of choice for seizures specifically for cats? Also do you find that cats are less likely to need treatment with anti-seizure medication?
Comments
The cases that I tend to see
The cases that I tend to see are skewed in that the infectious/traumatic causes have already been eliminated leaving neoplasia and true or idiopathic epilepsy as important causes. In this cat true epilepsy seems the most likely diagnosis. Drugs used to control seizures are phenobarbitol, diazepam, and levetiracetam.
I tend to treat based on number and duration of seizures, presence of cluster seizures, and presenting in status epilepticus.
The cases that I tend to see
The cases that I tend to see are skewed in that the infectious/traumatic causes have already been eliminated leaving neoplasia and true or idiopathic epilepsy as important causes. In this cat true epilepsy seems the most likely diagnosis. Drugs used to control seizures are phenobarbitol, diazepam, and levetiracetam.
I tend to treat based on number and duration of seizures, presence of cluster seizures, and presenting in status epilepticus.
Thank you Dr. Lobetti. 🙂
Thank you Dr. Lobetti. 🙂
Thank you Dr. Lobetti. 🙂
Thank you Dr. Lobetti. 🙂
I adopted a kitten who
I adopted a kitten who started having seizures at 9 weeks of age. No toxin, no trauma, infectious causes ruled out through testing including spinal tap. The only thing I did not do was an MRI. His neurologists speculated some structural congenital abnormality (I did find out after this started that he was a product of a brother-sister mating) and considered him an unusual case. We maintained him as best we could with phenobarb, diazapam and levetiracetam but he would still have seizures 2-3 times a month. He eventually got to the point where he had no use of his hind end (he even had a cart although he preferred to have us run him around supported by a towel). We would take him with us when we went out of town, I couldn’t leave him with anyone else; what an awesome traveler and an endearing personality. He progressed to the point where he basically had difficulty maintaining conciousness for more than a few seconds, and his last weekend with us I did nothing but hold him in my arms. Sorry, maybe more than you wanted to hear, but in my many years owning cats and seeing them in my practice, never have I known such an awesome cat. I still wonder what was going on in his CNS that resulted in such a progression and outcome.
I adopted a kitten who
I adopted a kitten who started having seizures at 9 weeks of age. No toxin, no trauma, infectious causes ruled out through testing including spinal tap. The only thing I did not do was an MRI. His neurologists speculated some structural congenital abnormality (I did find out after this started that he was a product of a brother-sister mating) and considered him an unusual case. We maintained him as best we could with phenobarb, diazapam and levetiracetam but he would still have seizures 2-3 times a month. He eventually got to the point where he had no use of his hind end (he even had a cart although he preferred to have us run him around supported by a towel). We would take him with us when we went out of town, I couldn’t leave him with anyone else; what an awesome traveler and an endearing personality. He progressed to the point where he basically had difficulty maintaining conciousness for more than a few seconds, and his last weekend with us I did nothing but hold him in my arms. Sorry, maybe more than you wanted to hear, but in my many years owning cats and seeing them in my practice, never have I known such an awesome cat. I still wonder what was going on in his CNS that resulted in such a progression and outcome.
We have had a handful of
We have had a handful of cases, young cats or kittens that had dramatic progression of ataxia especially affecting the hind quarters, but otherwise active and full of personality. In most of these cases dry FIP was the sad diagnosis and the owners would PTS when quality of life ceased to exist. It is so difficult when there are no treatment options available for these patients.
We have had a handful of
We have had a handful of cases, young cats or kittens that had dramatic progression of ataxia especially affecting the hind quarters, but otherwise active and full of personality. In most of these cases dry FIP was the sad diagnosis and the owners would PTS when quality of life ceased to exist. It is so difficult when there are no treatment options available for these patients.
Forgot to mention that my cat
Forgot to mention that my cat did live to age 5 years, so the progression was very slow.
Forgot to mention that my cat
Forgot to mention that my cat did live to age 5 years, so the progression was very slow.
Five years is certainly not
Five years is certainly not typical of what we saw at our hospital with the dry FIP, typically they survived less than 1 year. 🙁
Five years is certainly not
Five years is certainly not typical of what we saw at our hospital with the dry FIP, typically they survived less than 1 year. 🙁