Medicine

If your cat firmly presses his head against a wall or sofa for extended periods for no apparent reason, dont be quick to dismiss it as attention seeking. He could be facing a significant health problem. Head pressing is an abnormal behavior, Dr. Kaplan says. It should be considered an emergency, and veterinary attention should be sought immediately.

Vomiting can be caused by many problems, ranging from obstruction of the gastrointestinal tract by hairballs or ingested string and other objects to metabolic diseases like kidney disease and hyperthyroidism, to inflammatory diseases like inflammatory bowel disease, to the ingestion of toxic substances such as plants, to cancer.

The disease takes several forms: hypertrophic cardiomyopathy, where the walls of the heart are thick; restrictive, where the walls are stiff; dilated, where there is thinning and weakening of the heart muscle, and arrhythmogenic right ventricular, where fat and scar tissue replace heart muscle, primarily in the right side of the heart.

Ear infections are relatively uncommon in cats - infections of the external ear occur twice as often in dogs. However, you should be aware of these significant facts: A study shows that geography can determine if your cat is likely to develop an ear infection. Left untreated, an infection can become chronic, causing pain and irreparable damage to the ear canal or eardrum. You can become the first line of defense in identifying an ear infection. Simply check your cats ears by giving them a quick rub - something you probably do everyday. Whether your cat shows pleasure or discomfort is a clue to the ears condition.

Every time your cat nuzzles up to a neighbors cat or scratches in wet soil where another cat has relieved himself, he runs the risk that he will pick up an uninvited guest: the parasite called giardia. It survives throughout the country in any place thats wet or damp, and thrives inside its hosts. Infection rates will vary depending on geographic location but one study has shown the rates to be about 10 percent in cats, says Brian Collins, DVM, Section Chief of the Community Practice Service at Cornell University College of Veterinary Medicine.

Cornell is seeking cats with chronic, non-responsive gingivostomatitis for a clinical trial using stem cells. The disease causes severe, painful inflammation affecting the gums and mucosa in the mouth. The cause remains unknown. The Dentistry and Oral Surgery Service at Cornell University Hospital for Animals will use the cats own stem cells in the research. Current treatments are less than ideal, unpredictable and associated with possible complications.

Dusty was a black and white cat who hissed, swatted and squirmed anytime a veterinarian or technician tried to restrain her for an examination or, worse, tried to draw blood or give an injection. This same cat, however, transformed into a picture of serenity and calm during acupuncture treatments.

Your arthritic cat walks stiffly, and its difficult to find a medication to treat him without side effects. Could stem cell therapy be an option? Its use in human medicine has grown in the past decade, heralded as a promising treatment for a host of diseases. The latest area of pioneering research, according to the National Institutes of Health, is adult-derived stem cells for repair of the heart.

Cats are less commonly infected by heartworms than dogs, and approximately 80 percent of infected cats clear the infection without signs of disease, but studies have shown the incidence of infection to be greater than previously thought. One study found that between 2 and 5 percent of shelter cats were harboring heartworms. Other statistics show that the prevalence of heartworm disease in cats likely approaches 5 percent, and that it can even occur in cats living indoors.

Hrudey was in trouble. The 7-year-old cat had been diagnosed with both kidney disease and hypertrophic cardiomyopathy, the most common form of heart disease in cats. The double whammy made it difficult to manage his health because of the need to balance the fluids necessary for kidney health with the diuretics that helped control his heart disease. On top of that, of course, his feline nature meant that he wasnt fond of taking medication.

All cats face the risk of heart disease, from domestic shorthairs to prized rare breeds, but the signs can remain undetected for years before resulting in diminished or total loss of cardiac function. The challenge for owners is to be alert to subtle changes in their cats.

Over the past decade, veterinarians have dramatically increased their use of laser therapy for wound healing and inflammatory conditions in the elbow, knee and lower back. Unlike surgical lasers that cut and vaporize tissue, their low-level lasers painlessly penetrate below the skin to help in healing deep tissue and joint problems.