Peer-reviewed veterinary case report
Cat with recurring skin nodules and high vitamin E levels in blood
By Steffl, Martin et al.·Published in Veterinary medicine and science·2020·Veterinary Practice of the University of Hohenheim, Germany·View original on PubMed →
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Original publication title: Nodular panniculitis in a cat with high alpha tocopherol concentration in serum.
- Species:
- cat
Plain-English summary
A 5-year-old male neutered domestic shorthair cat had recurring lumps under the skin that needed to be surgically removed multiple times. Each time, the lumps were diagnosed as fat necrosis and a type of inflammation called panniculitis. After the second surgery, tests showed that the cat had very high levels of vitamin E in its blood, which is unusual. However, the cat's diet didn't contain more vitamin E than other foods, suggesting that high vitamin E levels alone don't prevent this skin condition. The cat's treatment involved surgery, and while the underlying cause remains unclear, it highlights the need for more research on vitamin E levels in cats.
People also search for: cat skin lumps treatment · why does my cat have nodules · high vitamin E in cats · cat panniculitis causes
Abstract
A 5-year-old male neutered domestic shorthair cat suffered from recurrent solitary nodules in different subcutaneous body regions. Nodules were surgically removed and each time histopathological diagnosis was fat necrosis and fibrosing to pyogranulomatous panniculitis. After the second surgery the alpha (α)-tocopherol concentration in serum of the cat was examined and the result (21 mg/L) exceeded the upper limit of the reference interval (3-11 mg/L). Vitamin E amount in diet fed solely in the past was checked as studies have shown that vitamin E amounts in food significantly influence vitamin E concentrations in serum. For comparative purposes, α-tocopherol concentrations were determined in sera of healthy control cats. Additionally, vitamin E amount in wet food from different manufacturers was analysed using gas chromatography coupled to mass spectrometry (GC-MS). The results showed that the diet did not have higher vitamin E amounts compared to other diets. All control cats had similar high serum α-tocopherol concentrations. We conclude that panniculitis can occur despite high serum α-tocopherol concentrations in cats. Further studies are needed to redefine reference values of α-tocopherol in serum of cats.
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Search related cases →Original publication on PubMed: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/32421260/