Peer-reviewed veterinary case report
Stiff gait and mouth opening trouble in related kittens
By Hickford, F H et al.·Published in The Journal of small animal practice·1998·Veterinary Teaching Hospital, United States·View original on PubMed →
PetCaseFinder translated the abstract of this peer-reviewed paper into plain English so pet owners can read it. We do not publish original research — every detail traces back to the citation above. How we work →
Original publication title: Congenital myotonia in related kittens.
- Species:
- cat
Plain-English summary
Four related domestic shorthair kittens were brought in because they had trouble walking, opening their mouths, and their muscles appeared larger than normal. They walked stiffly, and their stiffness improved when they exercised. When startled, they would extend their limbs and sometimes fall over, and one kitten had a hoarse voice. The vet diagnosed them with congenital myotonia, a condition that affects muscle control. This is the first time this condition has been reported in kittens, and while there is no specific treatment mentioned, understanding the condition can help manage their symptoms.
People also search for: kitten stiff gait · congenital myotonia in kittens · why can't my kitten open its mouth · kitten muscle problems · kitten falling over when startled
Abstract
Four closely related domestic shorthair kittens were investigated following the detection of abnormalities in their gait, difficulty opening their mouths and muscle hypertrophy. They walked with a stiff, stilted gait, with the stiffness reducing during exercise. Startling of the kittens resulted in hyperextension of the limbs and falling to lateral recumbency, or spasm of the orbicularis oculi muscle, prolonged prolapse of the nictitating membranes and flattening of the ears. One kitten was intermittently dysphonic. Endotracheal intubation of the anaesthetised kittens was difficult due to an inability to open the mouth to a wide angle, and narrowing of the glottis due to muscle spasm. A diagnosis of congenital myotonia was made based on the clinical signs, the kittens' ages, typical myotonic discharges on electromyography, and the histopathological and histochemical findings in muscle. This is the first report of congenital myotonia in this species.
Find similar cases for your pet
PetCaseFinder finds other peer-reviewed reports of pets with the same symptoms, plus a plain-English summary of what was tried across them.
Search related cases →Original publication on PubMed: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/9673904/