Peer-reviewed veterinary case report
Diabetes risk in Swedish cats linked to age breed and sex
By Öhlund, M et al.Ā·Published in Journal of veterinary internal medicineĀ·2015Ā·Department of Clinical SciencesĀ·View original on PubMed ā
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Original publication title: Incidence of Diabetes Mellitus in Insured Swedish Cats in Relation to Age, Breed and Sex.
- Species:
- cat
Plain-English summary
A study found that diabetes mellitus (DM) is becoming more common in cats, particularly affecting certain breeds and male cats. Among a large group of insured Swedish cats, the overall rate of diabetes was about 12 cases per 10,000 cats each year. Male cats were twice as likely to develop diabetes compared to females, and breeds like Burmese, Russian Blue, Norwegian Forest, and Abyssinian were at higher risk. If you have a cat from one of these breeds, it's important to monitor their weight and health closely, as obesity can increase the risk of diabetes.
People also search for: cat diabetes symptoms Ā· Burmese cat diabetes risk Ā· how to prevent diabetes in cats
Abstract
BACKGROUND: Diabetes mellitus (DM) is a common endocrinopathy in cats. Most affected cats suffer from a type of diabetes similar to type 2 diabetes in humans. An increasing prevalence has been described in cats, as in humans, related to obesity and other lifestyle factors. OBJECTIVES: To describe the incidence of DM in insured Swedish cats and the association of DM with demographic risk factors, such as age, breed and sex. ANIMALS: A cohort of 504,688 individual cats accounting for 1,229,699 cat-years at risk (CYAR) insured by a Swedish insurance company from 2009 to 2013. METHODS: We used reimbursed insurance claims for the diagnosis of DM. Overall incidence rates and incidence rates stratified on year, age, breed, and sex were estimated. RESULTS: The overall incidence rate of DM in the cohort was 11.6 cases (95% confidence interval [CI], 11.0-12.2) per 10,000 CYAR. Male cats had twice as high incidence rate (15.4; 95% CI, 14.4-16.4) as females (7.6; 95% CI, 6.9-8.3). Domestic cats were at higher risk compared to purebred cats. A significant association with breed was seen, with the Burmese, Russian Blue, Norwegian Forest cat, and Abyssinian breeds at a higher risk compared to other cats. No sex predisposition was found among Burmese cats. Several breeds with a lower risk of DM were identified. CONCLUSIONS AND CLINICAL IMPORTANCE: Our results verify that the Burmese breed is at increased risk of developing DM. We also identified several previously unreported breeds with increased or decreased risk of DM.
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Search related cases āOriginal publication on PubMed: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/26179258/