Registered: Aug 2003
Location: Brockville, Ontario
Posts: 1
Pancreatic Abcess
My nine year old, Tim, was diagonsed with a pancreatic abcess on Friday and started on antibiotics. I was told to give him no food or water as doing so would cause him great pain. Even smelling it would cause pain. I've followed the vet's instructions but Tim is hungry and weak and, of course, has lost more than half of his body weight in the past few weeks. From what I've been reading about this he should be in hospital on an I.V. but for some reason I was not offered that option. I finally gave him a bit of wet food and he is now sleeping comfortably with no show of pain. Yet.
Is there someone out there with some experience with this infection. I really need some help here and any I can get will be greatly appreciated! Thanks in advance! Jennie
hissy sent me here and told me to "holler at Traci" so I'm hollering!
Pancreatic abcess
Re: Pancreatic abcess
Ideally, yes, IV fluid therapy is the mainstay in initial treatment, as well as witholding food (can be anywhere from 3-5 days), feeding will induce pancreatic secretions, making abdominal pain worse, induce vomiting, increase dehydration. The last thing you want to do is feed your cat anything with high protein, high fat and there is probably plenty in the canned food you just gave him. Withholding food in the first 3-5 days is paramount (which necessitates the need for IV fluids)....and only when clinical signs begin to resolve should oral implementation begin, and only then, with bland diets such as nothing but plain white rice (carbohydrates), and then something like cottage cheese or lean meat. Usually, water only is first introduced after the first 3 days if clinical signs are resolving (then you can worry about oral food implementation).
I strongly suggest getting your kitty to an ER vet facility immediately, one that has experience in treating acute pancreatic episodes, but it sounds like this may be another form, the abcess may indicate necrotizing pancreatitis, which is more advanced than an acute bout of pancreatitis. You may be faced with surgical removal of the abcess, but you need an experienced professional feline surgeon to advise you further. At this point, get your kitty to a 24-hour ER facility immediately, opt for IV fluids if necessary, get a pro consult with a surgeon specialist and take it from there. Don't wait another minute on this, and do NOT take treatment, feeding, etc into your own hands. Get thee and kitty to the nearest ER vet clinic ASAP. (please ask your current vet to get kitty's records transferred pronto)
I strongly suggest getting your kitty to an ER vet facility immediately, one that has experience in treating acute pancreatic episodes, but it sounds like this may be another form, the abcess may indicate necrotizing pancreatitis, which is more advanced than an acute bout of pancreatitis. You may be faced with surgical removal of the abcess, but you need an experienced professional feline surgeon to advise you further. At this point, get your kitty to a 24-hour ER facility immediately, opt for IV fluids if necessary, get a pro consult with a surgeon specialist and take it from there. Don't wait another minute on this, and do NOT take treatment, feeding, etc into your own hands. Get thee and kitty to the nearest ER vet clinic ASAP. (please ask your current vet to get kitty's records transferred pronto)
..........Traci