Peer-reviewed veterinary case report
Survival and causes of death in diabetic cats from 1982-1994
By Kraus, M S et al.·Published in Journal of the American Animal Hospital Association·1997·Department of Small Animal Medicine, United States·View original on PubMed →
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Original publication title: Feline diabetes mellitus: a retrospective mortality study of 55 cats (1982-1994).
- Species:
- cat
Plain-English summary
A group of 55 cats with diabetes, mostly between 7.5 and 15 years old, were studied to understand their health outcomes. Many of these cats had other health issues, which contributed to a high death rate within the first year. However, those that survived past one year had a better chance of living longer, with some living an average of 41 months after their diagnosis. Most cats did not die directly from diabetes, but rather from other conditions like kidney failure and liver disease. This highlights the importance of managing any additional health problems alongside diabetes in cats.
Abstract
Signalment, concomitant diseases, prognostic factors, and mortality were evaluated, retrospectively, in 55 diabetic cats (mean age, 11 years; range, five to 18 years). Sixty-seven percent of the cats were between 7.5 and 15 years of age. One-year mortality (n = 23) was high; most early deaths were due to comorbid disease, and the rate of death diminished in cats surviving beyond one year. The median survival time for all cats was 29 months; among cats that died, the median survival time was 11 months. Of the cats surviving more than one year, 16 were alive at a mean of 41 months. Only 13 of 37 cats died due to diabetes mellitus; the majority died due to concomitant diseases, with renal failure (n = 8) and hepatopathies (n = 6) being the most common causes. No clinical data was identified as being of prognostic significance.
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Search related cases →Original publication on PubMed: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/9111718/