Peer-reviewed veterinary case report
Cat suddenly unable to walk on all four legs due to heart blood clots
By Bowles, Danielle B et al.·Published in Journal of feline medicine and surgery·2010·Veterinary Specialist Group·View original on PubMed →
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Original publication title: Cardiogenic arterial thromboembolism causing non-ambulatory tetraparesis in a cat.
- Species:
- cat
Plain-English summary
A 1-year-old oriental cat suddenly lost the ability to move all four legs and was vocalizing in distress. The veterinarian suspected a serious blood clot issue affecting the cat's circulation, which was confirmed after the cat sadly passed away. An ultrasound of the heart revealed severe heart disease that likely contributed to the blood clots. This case highlights the importance of considering blood clot problems in cats that show sudden weakness or paralysis, even if they haven't been diagnosed with heart issues before.
People also search for: cat sudden paralysis · oriental cat heart disease · cat blood clot symptoms
Abstract
A 1-year-old oriental cat was presented with a peracute onset of tetraparesis and vocalisation. Clinical findings were suggestive of multi-site thromboembolic disease, and this was confirmed on post-mortem examination. An echocardiogram showed severe restrictive cardiomyopathy and spontaneous echogenic contrast. To the author's knowledge, this is the first reported case of tetraparesis secondary to cardiogenic arterial thromboembolic disease. Thromboembolic disease should be included as a differential diagnosis for any cat presented with a peracute onset of paresis or paralysis, even if there is no history of cardiac disease.
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Search related cases →Original publication on PubMed: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/19692276/