Feline Endocrine Diseases: Understanding Hyperthyroidism and Diabetes in Cats
What are endocrine diseases in cats?
Endocrine diseases are conditions that cause hormonal imbalances in the body, causing the body to not function properly. In cats, the most common endocrine diseases are hyperthyroidism and diabetes mellitus.
What are the symptoms and diagnosis of diabetes in cats?
Cats that have diabetes tend to drink more, urinate more, have an increased appetite, and experience weight loss. Diabetes is actually a straightforward condition to diagnose; we conduct blood and urine testing, making diagnosis quite easy.
How is diabetes treated in cats?
The treatment at home for diabetes involves administering insulin and feeding high-protein, low-carbohydrate canned cat food. There are specific prescription cat foods for diabetic cats that can be really helpful in lowering the amount of insulin they need.
What is hyperthyroidism in cats?
Hyperthyroidism is an over-secretion of thyroid hormone. When thyroid hormone is over-secreted, the cat becomes hypermetabolic. They drink more, urinate more, have more energy, their heart beats faster and harder, they can occasionally vomit, they will lose weight despite eating more, and sometimes their hair coat will change. They may not be grooming as well and can be more aggressive.
How is hyperthyroidism treated in cats?
Hyperthyroidism is easy to treat. The main treatment is with an oral drug called methimazole, given twice daily. We generally follow up with a recheck blood work to ensure we are giving them the appropriate dose, which normalizes thyroid levels. The other, ideal, gold-standard treatment is radioiodine therapy, which has to be administered at a different location than your general practitioner's office because it's a radioactive substance and needs to be handled specially.
How is hyperthyroid disease diagnosed in cats?
Hyperthyroid disease is diagnosed with blood work. It's a relatively straightforward diagnosis; most cases have an elevated T4 result, which is on a common chemistry CBC senior panel. Occasionally, they're borderline, and further testing might be needed in those cases.
Why are six-month exams important for senior cats?
A lot of cats become hyperthyroid, with the average age being around 13 years. The longer they live, the more likely they are to develop this disease. I personally really like six-month exams for senior cats because we look for symptoms that are very obvious to us but might not be to the cat owner. We often notice weight loss, changes in their coat, or a quiet heart murmur before any other symptoms are evident. Weight loss is hard to see at home because they are still eating well, so many assume they're not losing weight. However, our baby scale might show a 1 lb or 2 lb weight loss, which is often surprising for owners. Physical exams are great because if we have that index of suspicion, we can easily test for it. It is treatable, and then they can return to normal, gaining weight and being happy and satiated when they eat again. Their drinking and urination decrease, and their vomiting stops. It's a very rewarding disease to treat.
Thank you for watching the video today. I hope you learned a little bit more about diabetes and hyperthyroid disease in cats. If you have any questions, please don't hesitate to reach out to us.
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