Epilepsy in Cats: Everything You Should Know
Cats can suffer from epilepsy, just like us humans. Epilepsy is a disease of the nervous system and it causes sudden discharges of neurons in the brain. These lead to seizures, which are accompanied by disturbances of consciousness and movement.
If you suspect that your cat suffers from epilepsy, a visit to the vet is essential.
What causes epilepsy in cats?
When a cat suffers an epileptic seizure, certain nerve cells in the brain are overly active. This leads to temporary changes in consciousness and uncontrolled movements in affected animals.
In some cats the tendency to epilepsy is congenital. In addition, however, diseases and injuries can also be a possible trigger of the nervous disease. Possible causes are for example tumours or malformations of the vessels, which affect the metabolism and the blood circulation of the brain.
Another possible cause of epilepsy in cats is an inflammation of the brain, which in turn can have various causes, such as a viral infection.
Symptoms of epilepsy in cats
If a cat suffers from epilepsy, this only becomes noticeable when the quadruped is having an epileptic seizure. Such seizures can occur in affected animals with very different frequency and severity.
In many cases attentive cat owners notice changes in behaviour such as restlessness or even a withdrawal of their quadruped even before the seizure.
During the actual epileptic seizure many cats fall over and perform convulsive movements with their legs. It is often observed that cats salivate a lot during the seizure. Some animals also inadvertently defecate and urinate during the seizure.
Sometimes the epileptic seizures can last for several minutes or occur in quick succession. Both can be life-threatening for the cat in the worst case. After a survived seizure the quadruped is usually clearly exhausted.
Diagnosis of epilepsy in cats
Should your cat suffer a seizure as just described, a timely appointment with the vet is of course essential. In order to diagnose epilepsy in your cat, the vet will first ask you about the symptoms you have experienced.
However, the vet will not usually make a final diagnosis until your pet has had repeated seizures.
Imaging techniques such as CT and MRI can then be used to detect any changes in the cat's brain, such as tumours. The vet will also usually carry out a blood test.
If necessary, it is also possible to take some spinal fluid from the animal and examine it for any inflammation or infection that may be causing your cat's epilepsy.
Treatment of a cat with epilepsy
There is no cure for epilepsy in cats at the moment. The treatment depends primarily on the frequency and severity of the epileptic seizures. If these occur only rarely, specific therapy measures are usually not necessary.
If your cat has severe seizures on a regular basis, the vet will most likely prescribe medication for your pet.
For example, diazepam and phenobarbital can be used to treat epilepsy in cats. In most cases, you will have to give your pet these medicines daily, which often leads to tiredness, especially in the early stages.
In the case of particularly severe epileptic seizures, it is also possible to administer the active ingredients to the cat intravenously. In this way, they act more quickly, which may well save your pet's life in an emergency.
A prognosis for cats with epilepsy is difficult
Unfortunately it is hardly possible to make a reliable prognosis about the course of epilepsy in cats. One reason for this is that the possible causes of the disease can have different effects.
In many cases, the medication administered to the cat for its epilepsy has a fairly good effect and the frequency of seizures decreases. However, it may just as well be that your four-legged friend continues to have a tendency to have seizures, or even increases them over time.
Preventing epilepsy in cats
Since most of the triggers can hardly be influenced, it is practically impossible to prevent epilepsy in cats. After all, neither the genetic material nor any malformations of the vessels in the animal's brain can be changed.
If your cat suffers from epileptic seizures, the only thing left for you as the owner to do is to contact a vet as soon as possible. Even the vet cannot prevent the disease. However, the vet can at least determine suitable therapeutic measures which, with a bit of luck, can bring your cat's epilepsy under control.
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