Peer-reviewed veterinary case report
Emergency signs of muscular dystrophy in a young cat
By Gambino, Anya N et al.·Published in Journal of the American Animal Hospital Association·2014·Department Emergency and Critical Care, United States·View original on PubMed →
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Original publication title: Emergent presentation of a cat with dystrophin-deficient muscular dystrophy.
- Species:
- cat
Plain-English summary
A young cat was brought to the emergency vet with signs of muscle weakness and difficulty moving, which turned out to be caused by a rare condition called muscular dystrophy. This condition is linked to a genetic mutation that affects muscle function. Unfortunately, there is no specific treatment for muscular dystrophy, and cats with this condition face a higher risk of serious complications during their hospital stay. The vet was able to provide supportive care, but the prognosis remains challenging for cats diagnosed with this disease.
People also search for: cat muscle weakness · feline muscular dystrophy symptoms · emergency vet cat muscle problems
Abstract
This report describes a case of feline dystrophin-deficient muscular dystrophy (DDMD) with an atypical clinical presentation. A novel gene mutation is reported to be responsible for dystrophin-deficient hypertrophic muscular dystrophy. In an emergency setting, clinicians should be aware of muscular dystrophy in young cats and the importance of elevated creatine kinase (CK) activity. Muscular dystrophy is rare but can present both a diagnostic and therapeutic challenge in an emergency setting. Patients with muscular dystrophy have a progressive disease with no specific treatment and have an increased risk for death during their hospital stay.
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Search related cases →Original publication on PubMed: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/24446404/