Peer-reviewed veterinary case report
How vets diagnose obesity disease in cats using fat and blood tests
By Okada, Yuki et al.·Published in Frontiers in veterinary science·2019·School of Veterinary Medicine, Japan·View original on PubMed →
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Original publication title: Diagnostic Criteria for Obesity Disease in Cats.
- Species:
- cat
Plain-English summary
A study found that overweight cats, especially those with a body condition score (BCS) of over 7 out of 9, can develop a serious condition called obesity disease if they show signs of inflammation. This includes low levels of a protein called adiponectin and high levels of an inflammatory marker called serum amyloid A (SAA). These findings help veterinarians diagnose obesity disease early by looking for these specific symptoms and blood test results. Cats diagnosed with obesity disease may need special diets or treatments to manage their weight and inflammation effectively.
People also search for: cat obesity symptoms · overweight cat treatment · high BCS in cats · cat inflammatory markers · how to help my cat lose weight
Abstract
Accumulated visceral and subcutaneous fat masses were measured with computed tomography (CT) in cats with various body condition scores (BCS) from 5/9 to 9/9. BCS does not always reflect visceral fat accumulation which induces pro-inflammatory reactions. Obese cats with accumulated visceral fat showed low plasma adiponectin and high serum amyloid A (SAA) concentrations, an inflammatory marker. Based on the above results, new diagnostic criteria for obesity disease were established as follows. For overweight cats with high BCS of >7/9, showing two or more of the following three symptoms, low adiponectin concentrations, hyperlipidemia, and high SAA concentrations, categorizes them as having obesity disease. Cats with BCS 6/9-9/9, without inflammatory reactions, were classified as simple obesity, which is similar to metabolically healthy obesity (MHO) defined in human medicine. Simple obesity group showed significantly higher adiponectin concentrations than those in control group. The obesity disease group showed significantly higher plasma triglyceride (TG) and SAA concentrations and lower concentrations of adiponectin than the control group. Moreover, plasma glucose and malondialdehyde (MDA) concentrations in the obesity disease group were higher than those in healthy control group, although the differences were not statistically significant. Establishing criteria for obesity disease based on visceral fat accumulation and inflammation markers levels contributes to early and correct diagnosis of obesity in cats.
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Search related cases →Original publication on PubMed: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/31508438/