Treatment for pulmonary edema in a kitten. Pulmonary edema in cats: timely diagnosis and treatment

Young domestic cats are different excellent health and the ability to recover even from the most serious damage, but over the years the situation changes and the animal’s condition worsens. The reasons for the appearance of fluid in the lungs of a cat are extremely varied.

If fluid constantly accumulates in a cat’s lungs, this requires targeted therapy. The survival prognosis largely depends on the etiology of the pathology. The thing is that many unfavorable factors can lead to the gradual accumulation of transudate in the tissues of the respiratory organs. Most often, such a violation is a consequence of the development of severe pathologies of the cardiovascular system.

Typically, cats over 15 years of age begin to develop diseases that lead to the fact that the heart can no longer fully pump blood. Poor pumping function combined with high pressure cause blood stagnation in the pulmonary blood vessels. The capillaries in the lungs become more permeable and the blood plasma begins to saturate the tissues of the respiratory organs. At the same time, the problem does not always lie precisely in diseases of the cardiovascular system.

In some cases, pulmonary edema in a cat is non-cardiogenic. Impaired drainage function of the respiratory system may be associated with severe allergic reactions and septic tissue damage. Among other things, such disruption of lung function is often a consequence of severe traumatic brain injury, electric shock or neurogenic edema any etiology.

Quite often, fluid in a cat’s lungs may accumulate if there is malignant formation. Tumors put pressure on the blood vessels and lymphatic vessels, causing an increase in pressure in them, due to which plasma and lymphatic fluid saturate the tissues of the respiratory organs. In some cases, the processes of saturation of the lungs with transudate are associated with inflammatory diseases of an infectious and non-infectious nature.

Under certain circumstances, pulmonary edema can be caused by disturbances in the functioning of the gastrointestinal tract and liver. A decrease in the production of special proteins in the cat’s body leads to the fact that blood vessels become more permeable.

Filling an animal's lungs with fluid should not go unnoticed by pet owners. The symptoms of this pathological condition are quite noticeable. If fluid in a cat’s lungs accumulates gradually and small quantities, the animal, as a rule, behaves very restlessly, tries to avoid touching and hides under beds and in other secluded places.

With a significant accumulation of transudate, more characteristic symptomatic manifestations appear, including increased breathing, shortness of breath, and the mucous membranes of the animal acquire a bluish tint. Wheezing and gurgling in the chest are clearly audible. In some cases, your cat may begin to cough up small amounts of liquid. Considering that the animal does not have enough oxygen, it can take poses with its front legs widely spaced, trying to increase its size chest. If there are any signs of fluid accumulation in the animal's lungs necessary measure is a visit to the veterinarian.

To determine the problem, an X-ray of the cat’s chest and a number of other studies are usually performed that help identify the root cause of the pathology. To improve the general condition of the animal, diuretics are usually prescribed to remove it from the lungs. excess liquid. IN severe cases shows the animal being placed in a special oxygen chamber. These therapies can at least temporarily improve the cat's condition, but cannot eliminate the root cause of the problem. Further treatment animal is carried out taking into account the disease that caused the accumulation of fluid in the lungs.

If pulmonary edema in a cat is caused by cardiac problems, the doctor may prescribe supportive therapy to eliminate the existing manifestations and prevent the animal’s premature death. Septic, allergic and inflammatory diseases, therefore, if they are identified, pulmonary edema can be eliminated completely.

Despite the fact that in some cases an animal in which transudate accumulates in the respiratory organs can be successfully treated, if severe forms even targeted therapy is often useless. To prevent the death of a cat from pulmonary edema, it is necessary to contact a veterinary clinic at the first manifestations of the pathology, as this will increase the chances of recovery.

Pulmonary edema is serious condition, which occurs as a result of capillaries and veins overflowing with blood. As a result of this, the blood plasma of the bronchi enters the bronchioles and connective tissue lung tissue. Blood stagnation, in turn, leads to swelling of the lung mucosa and bronchi. The disease is classified as a pre-mortem condition.

The onset of edema, as a rule, develops quickly and sharply, as a result of which they begin to suffer vitally. important organs animal: heart, kidneys, lungs and brain. Therefore, at the first signs of pulmonary edema in a cat, treatment must begin as early as possible and only strictly under the supervision of an experienced doctor.

Pulmonary edema can develop as a consequence of inflammation of overheating, lungs (thermal or sunstroke), heavy physical exertion, plague, pasteurellosis, pancreatitis, renal failure, general anesthesia and poisoning with chemical substances.

Symptoms of pulmonary edema

• abdominal palpitations;
• breathing breathing with a characteristic “gurgling”:
• wheezing, wet cough with bloody sputum;
• blue animal;
• mucous membranes takes a forced position, cannot. Important.

lie down: if a diagnosis of “feline pulmonary edema” is suspected, treatment begins immediately, since the life of the animal depends on the speed of reaction!

What not to do: worry and panic, try to get the animal drunk, and self-medicate the animal. Pulmonary edema is a very dangerous condition that requires not only intensive care, but also resuscitation measures, sometimes carried out by an experienced doctor.

necessary What to do: immediately dial our clinic telephone number and immediately explain to the veterinarian the severity of the condition, be sure! The life of a cat depends on the correctness of your actions!

Pulmonary edema in treatment, cats

Therapy begins with ensuring the cat is absolutely at rest. The drugs are mainly administered intravenously: glucose solution or calcium chloride, cordiamine, or sulfocamphocaine adrenaline. The doctor may also prescribe expectorants and diuretics. Further treatment is underway symptomatic.

Remember: the disease is always easier, therefore, prevent it in a timely manner preventive examination in the clinic, “consultation” and the veterinarian’s zoostatus are the key to the health and quality of life of your pet!

Pulmonary edema in cats - causes of the disease, symptoms and treatment

The disease manifests itself as a sharp expansion blood vessels lungs with subsequent accumulation of serous fluid in the alveoli.

Symptoms of the disease

The cat experiences severe depression due to the development of shortness of breath and attacks of suffocation. In this case, the animal takes a characteristic pose: in a standing position, the cat spreads its forelimbs and widens its nostrils. Its mucous membranes are bluish in color. Swelling is common subcutaneous tissue in the chest, paws, crotch and around the eyes. Foam with a bloody tint may be released from the nasal openings during inhalation.

Pulmonary edema never occurs independent disease. This disease often accompanies heart, kidney or liver failure, as well as anemia, cachexia (exhaustion), brain injury and inflammation, poisoning with toxic gases.

Treatment

Treatment measures should begin with eliminating the disease that provoked the development of pulmonary edema. The cat must be given complete rest. From medicines Cardiac, diuretic and laxative drugs should be used. Helps just as well intravenous administration 10% solution calcium chloride or 40% glucose solution.

Cardiogenic pulmonary edema in cats. Pulmonary edema

Exists standard algorithm actions that a veterinarian must follow when treating an acute condition caused by pulmonary edema. Since pulmonary edema develops acute respiratory failure and hypoxia of tissues and organs, including vital ones, requires oxygen therapy and, in some cases, artificial ventilation.

Among medicines, used to relieve an acute condition and reduce it negative consequences on the body - antipsychotics, diuretics, for example, furosemide (Lasix), nitroglycerin, corticosteroids, antihistamines, aminophylline, defoamers. It is also important to carry out treatment of the underlying cardiac pathology (if the edema is cardiogenic) and detoxification therapy for toxic pulmonary edema, as well as for the correction of disorders caused by respiratory failure.

When conducting infusion therapy(which may include plasma transfusion - for pulmonary edema caused by hypoalbuminemia, i.e. low albumin content in the blood) it is important to strictly (!) take into account the amount of fluids administered and diuresis, i.e. removing them, since its absence can greatly aggravate the condition of the animal, even fatal outcome. It is also necessary to appoint antibacterial drugs to prevent the development of secondary bacterial infection(it is especially important in cases where artificial ventilation lungs).

During treatment, regular monitoring of the body’s condition is also necessary using laboratory and instrumental studies(blood tests, radiography, electrocardiography, monitoring of arterial and venous pressure).

Prevention of the development of cardiogenic pulmonary edema involves timely diagnosis and adequate treatment (conservative or surgical - for heart defects that can be corrected) of heart disease. In addition, sharp and chronic diseases respiratory system, which are also one of the causes of pulmonary edema, must also be diagnosed before irreversible damage develops, often leading to the development of heart failure due to chronic hypoxia, to which, for example, the myocardium - the heart muscle - is very sensitive.

Non-cardiogenic pulmonary edema can be prevented by the absence of inappropriate fluid therapy (excessive amounts of fluid introduced into the body, which happens in cases where hydration is carried out without taking into account the amount of fluid in and out). Preventing the development of hypoalbuminemia in diseases of the kidneys, liver, intestines, as well as the animal’s refusal to eat, also prevents the development of pulmonary edema.

To prevent toxic shock it is necessary to prevent animals from inhaling various toxic substances, including poisonous gases and tobacco smoke, monitor the development of acute allergic reactions (which can only be done by a veterinarian).

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Pulmonary edema

Pulmonary edema is acute condition which requires immediate veterinary care and often causes the death of an animal. From these facts it follows that if there is a suspicion of pulmonary edema in your pet, you first need to contact a veterinarian (urgently, not via the Internet, but in a clinic where intensive care is possible!).

Symptoms of pulmonary edema include shortness of breath, breathing with an open mouth (a clear sign in cats, which normally do not exhibit this type of breathing), and coughing (rare in cats, more common in dogs). Animals often take a pose with their front paws widely spaced and refuse to assume a lying position. For more late stages A pinkish-colored foamy liquid may be released from the oral and nasal cavities.

Field of medicine: Pulmonology

Pulmonary edema in cats occurs due to the overflow of pulmonary capillaries with blood, accompanied by the release of the liquid part into the surrounding tissues. By its nature, the disease can be cardiogenic, that is, arising against the background of heart disease, and non-cardiogenic.

Causes of pulmonary edema in cats

Heart reasons

Cardiogenic edema, as already noted, is the result of heart failure. As a rule, when poor performance left ventricle (one of the parts of the heart), the functioning of the pulmonary circulation is disrupted, which leads to stagnation of blood in the lungs and subsequent leakage of fluid into the surrounding tissues.

This state can be compared to a porous sponge: up to a certain point, it swells and absorbs water without leaving a trace, but there comes a moment when there is no space left and the water flows out.

For cardiogenic causes, edema begins with lower sections, but gradually the process moves to the bronchi.

It is quite logical that the alveoli (in other words, pulmonary vesicles) filled to capacity with liquid do not have the ability to function normally - to carry out gas exchange. Naturally, the animal will suffer from asphyxia ( oxygen starvation) and will eventually die.

It is worth noting that the prognosis for pulmonary edema is unfavorable, especially if it is caused by a heart defect.

Other factors

Non-cardiogenic causes of hyperemia (another name for the disease) are the following:

• inhalation of hot air;
• inhalation of potent gases from pungent odor(e.g. long-term exposure to ammonia fumes high concentration will easily cause swelling);
• lobar pneumonia;
• heat or sunstroke;
• bacterial or viral infections in which the lungs are affected (pasteurellosis, carnivore plague, etc.);
• exposure to electric current;
• brain injuries due to an unsuccessful fall or blows;
• development of the septic process;
• taking certain potent medications in dosages significantly higher than recommended;
• renal failure, when the protein concentration in the blood sharply decreases;
• bronchial asthma;
• malignant tumors in the lungs that interfere with normal blood supply.

It is important to understand that pulmonary edema is a serious and very severe pathology, often ending in the death of a cat.

Symptoms of pulmonary edema in cats

An animal suffering from heart defects, especially if it is already of advanced age, is at risk. Therefore, any self-respecting owner of a sick pet should learn to recognize the signs of impending danger. And they are like this:

• the cat suddenly takes a forced pose: stands with its forelimbs widely spaced and its head bowed, thereby trying to inhale as much air as possible, its sides are greatly inflated;
• paws become cold;
• after a while the animal falls exhausted on its side and never gets up again;
• the mucous membranes of the mouth turn pale or become cyanotic;
• the animal has difficulty breathing, coughs heavily, and produces pinkish sputum;
• seething, bubbling cough;
• foamy discharge may occur from the nose and mouth;
• falls out;
• the work of the heart weakens, the pulse first quickens, and then becomes weak and intermittent;
• death occurs as a result of paralysis of the respiratory center.

The behavior of the animal also changes:

• firstly, he is scared, and fear can be read in everything;
• secondly, the lack of oxygen confuses the consciousness, the gaze becomes crazy, and then empty and unseeing;
• thirdly, the cat stops reacting to its surroundings and does not recognize its owners at all.

Despite the fact that edema is an acute and rapidly developing condition, you can notice the approaching danger in advance if you carefully observe your pet and its behavior. Typically, within a few days the breathing rhythm may become disrupted:

• the animal breathes with its stomach (the abdominal stacks shake) or through the mouth;
• the number of rhythmic inhalations and exhalations per minute increases significantly (more than 40);
• the breathing itself is wheezing and labored with periodic hacking coughing.

It is clear that such symptoms do not always indicate developing edema, but the time to ring the bells has already come. It is better to play it safe and take the animal for diagnostics to a clinic, where they will order an x-ray and perform auscultation (in other words, they will listen to the lungs using a special device) and check the functioning of the heart.

Moreover, it is better to film a cough and an altered state on video - fortunately, now almost everyone has a phone with a camera. This will help the veterinarian see the progression of the disease over time and decide on the prescription of additional diagnostic studies and speed up diagnosis.

Important! It is much easier to cure a process that is caught in a timely manner than to try to correct a neglected and altered condition, which is most often no longer compatible with life.

Prognosis for pulmonary edema in cats

There is no need to console yourself with excessive hopes: in most cases, pathology is regarded as a dying condition! There is a chance to rescue an animal from the dead only if non-cardiogenic edema occurs.

Even if it was possible to stop the development of the process in the case of cardiac causes, the likelihood of a recurrence of the attack is too high.

Treatment of pulmonary edema in cats

The disease requires immediate intervention from specialists; attempts to help the pet on your own will significantly aggravate the condition and hasten the approach of death.

All that the owner can do (provided that the swelling occurs due to heart failure) is to inject a solution of furosemide intramuscularly - a diuretic drug helps remove fluid from the body - and urgently go to the veterinary clinic.

Important! Using diuretics unless prescribed by your veterinarian is still not recommended.

In case of hyperemia, resuscitation cannot be avoided; further observation in a hospital is required. It is not possible to cure an animal with a telephone consultation!

When going to the hospital, it is important to try not to irritate the animal, especially at the time of the attack, so that the situation does not become even more complicated. There is no need to fuss, run, sob, cry - the cat feels all this and, naturally, gets stressed. And, as you know, it doesn’t lead to any good.

The resuscitation regimen usually includes the use of oxygen cushion(chambers), in some cases tracheotomy and purpose:

• diuretics (diuretics) to remove accumulated water in the lungs;
• defoamers;
• vasodilators;
• cardiac drugs to stabilize the heart;
• bloodletting;
• novocaine blockade of sympathetic nodes.

After the crisis has passed, the animal is placed in a cool, well-ventilated room (but ventilation does not mean draft) and applied symptomatic treatment: expectorants, antibiotics, etc. It is very important to determine the cause of swelling and eliminate it.

Most cases of pulmonary hyperemia end in the development of complications, which also need to be, if not prevented, then at least correctly diagnosed and treated. The most common consequences include:

• pneumonia;
• collapse of the alveoli (atelectasis);
• alveolar fusion connective tissue(pneumosclerosis);
• emphysema - overfilling of the alveoli with air followed by their rupture.

In addition, prolonged oxygen starvation negatively affects almost all organs, especially the cells of the brain and kidneys.

Preventive actions

Required for cats with heart problems constant control for the state of cardio-vascular system and the work of the heart. It is especially important to constantly monitor animals at risk:

• obese people;
• with confirmed caryomyopathy;
• leading a “sofa” lifestyle;
• having relatives with heart problems;
• British, Scots, Macoons, Persians, Abyssinians and Sphynxes - those breeds that most often suffer from heart disease;
• drowsy and easily overtired.

In other cases, they monitor general condition animal being fed the right feed, and not cheap ones of dubious quality, lung diseases are treated in a timely manner to prevent them from overflowing with blood and fluid.

And one more important point, which you should listen to: if you already know that the cat’s heart is not all right, then learn by heart the signs of impending danger in order to do everything necessary on time and not miss precious minutes that could cost the pet’s life.

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Animals, like people, suffer from a number of diseases, the cure of which depends on the speed and quality of diagnosis. Such diseases include pulmonary edema in cats. Unfortunately, in certain situations the development of such a condition indicates near death animal, but in other cases it can still be saved.

Be that as it may, it is in our power to try to cure a pet, and in cases of severe pathology, to facilitate his departure to another world.

The most important thing when detecting or even suspecting the development of pulmonary edema is to promptly seek help. medical care. Therefore, the answer to the frequently asked question - is it possible to cure pulmonary edema in a cat at home - can only be one: no, only an experienced veterinarian can handle this in a well-equipped modern clinic.

What is pulmonary edema

Pulmonary edema in animals is a life-threatening condition in which accumulated fluid in the lungs presses on the alveoli and prevents the normal flow of oxygen to the body's tissues. As a result, the animal suffers greatly from hypoxia - oxygen deficiency, suffocates, and suffocates, and ultimately without rapid response dies.

This condition occurs not only when pulmonary diseases and infections. Edema itself is not an independent disease, it is just a symptom or rather a consequence of the development various pathologies, each of which can provoke the occurrence of this most dangerous condition.

Just like in people, pulmonary edema in cats is a serious and very life-threatening condition, so saving a sick animal is only possible with early treatment to the clinic. Small kittens and old, obese or malnourished cats are especially susceptible to the disease. For both weak immunity, which may have poor resistance to the underlying disease.

To confirm or deny preliminary diagnosis most often done X-ray, but based on symptoms, the veterinarian can prescribe a whole series necessary tests and examinations.

Causes of the condition in cats

Pulmonary edema in cats occurs in a variety of ways various reasons and is not an independent disease, but a complication, for example, after sterilization or castration. The anesthesia used during surgery promotes the sweating of fluid from stagnant blood in the vessels and its accumulation in the lungs. This is accompanied by pulmonary edema, which can lead to serious consequences until the death of the four-legged patient.