Acute stomach bloating causing enlarged belly in cats

Abstract

Acute gastric dilatation (AGD) is a well-known, acute, life-threatening disease in dogs but its feline counterpart is much less known. This paper provides descriptions of 2 cases of AGD in cats that the authors have seen. Including these a total of 10 cases of feline AGD have been reported. No breed or sex predilection was found among the cases. Age distribution ranged from 11 weeks to 13 years. All 10 cats with AGD had enlarged abdomens on presentation. In 3 of the cases this was the only presenting sign and all 3 were simple, uncomplicated gastric dilatations, that were easily corrected by gastric decompression. Four of the 10 cats with AGD had dyspnea in addition to enlarged abdomens and only one of these cats survived, suggesting that this combination of clinical signs might indicate a guarded prognosis. Five out of the 10 cats with AGD had gastric torsion, 2 of these with concomitant diaphragmatic hernia. Four of the 5 cats with gastric torsion survived after appropriate surgery. Diaphragmatic hernia was a concurrent condition in 3 cats with signs of AGD. A mortality of 30% was observed in cats with AGD. Treatment was successful in 7 out of 10 cases and consisted of shock therapy combined with gastric decompression or surgery. Prognosis seems favorable once the initial acute stage has been overcome. Recurrence has only been recorded in one cat. Conclusions drawn from the available material are: 1) clinical signs and therapeutical management of AGD are similar in cats and dogs, 2) the age of the patients seem to differ between feline and canine AGD, 3) more information is needed to fully assess the prognosis and recurrence rate of feline AGD.