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Peer-reviewed veterinary case report

Feline inflammatory bowel disease

Journal:
Medycyna Weterynaryjna
Year:
2019
Authors:
D. Stegierska et al.
Species:
cat

Plain-English summary

Inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) is a common issue in cats that causes ongoing problems in their digestive system. This condition is linked to inflammation in the intestines, but the exact cause is not fully understood. Diagnosing IBD involves ruling out other possible reasons for the symptoms and confirming inflammation through tests on tissue samples. Treatment typically includes medications to reduce inflammation and suppress the immune system, along with dietary changes and sometimes antibiotics or supplements. While many cats respond well to treatment, they may need to continue taking anti-inflammatory medications for the rest of their lives to keep the symptoms under control.

Abstract

Inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) is one of the most common causes of chronic clinical signs from the gastrointestinal tract, associated with histological evidence of inflammation in the lamina propria of the small and/or large intestine in cats. The underlying etiopathogenesis of this inflammation remains unclear. IBD is probably caused by a combination of environmental and immune factors in genetically susceptible individuals. The process of diagnosing IBD involves several steps and is based on the exclusion of other causes of gastrointestinal signs and on the confirmation of the presence of inflammatory infiltration in the intestinal wall by histopathological assessment of biopsies. The treatment is based on anti-inflammatory and immunosuppressive drugs. In addition, dietotherapy, antibiotics, antiparasitic drugs, prebiotics, probiotics and supplementation of vitamin b12 are also used. For most patients, the response to treatment is satisfactory, but the maintenance of clinical remission in most of them may require anti-inflammatory drugs for the rest of their lives.

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Original publication: https://www.semanticscholar.org/paper/62c599ab9ca9962900a3cf9d17c8229b5cd4c130