Story in short .
Ten year old oriental enjoying good health .
On 8/4/2003 had first seizure.
Took to vets had blood tests, ruled out kindneys, liver .
Problem pointed towards brain tumour. Observed for a month had another 6/05/2003, took to vets ,prescribed barbiturates and offered referral to Glasgow Veterany University for CT scan.
After weighing up the affect that the 300 mile journey would have on him, e.g. stress.
What would the trip achieve anyway, just conformation of what the vet suspects?.
We are now in a dilema as to what to do for the best. Are we depriving our cat of the best chance or would we just be adding to his suffering?.
Is there anyone out there that can give advice either from own experience, or medical knowledge?.
Pam Lumsden.
Seizures"Oriental"
Pam, here is what we posted right before you came onboard:
original post
After reading your new post, I would just add that a CT or MRI can be a very helpful tool in diagnosing suspect brain tumors, or those imbedded deep within tissues that other films can't detect. I think it would be worth your while to get this done, and if your current vet has referred you, I would trust that judgement call.
It could be that it is not a tumor at all, but if the CT or MRI doesn't reveal anything, please refer to other testing options I outlined in above link.
If this were my kitty, I would proceed with the CT or MRI. I would either have confirmation and peace of mind, or if not conclusive, I would of course, opt for additional testing and diagnostics. If it isn't a tumor, you need to get to the cause of the matter in the event it is treatable.
Please don't give up, 10 years old is NOT old for a kitty, and if something is going undetected other than a tumor, you might have many options for treatment available to you. As well, the folks who perform the CT or MRI are experienced and you will be receiving excellent experience and feedback.
original post
After reading your new post, I would just add that a CT or MRI can be a very helpful tool in diagnosing suspect brain tumors, or those imbedded deep within tissues that other films can't detect. I think it would be worth your while to get this done, and if your current vet has referred you, I would trust that judgement call.
It could be that it is not a tumor at all, but if the CT or MRI doesn't reveal anything, please refer to other testing options I outlined in above link.
If this were my kitty, I would proceed with the CT or MRI. I would either have confirmation and peace of mind, or if not conclusive, I would of course, opt for additional testing and diagnostics. If it isn't a tumor, you need to get to the cause of the matter in the event it is treatable.
Please don't give up, 10 years old is NOT old for a kitty, and if something is going undetected other than a tumor, you might have many options for treatment available to you. As well, the folks who perform the CT or MRI are experienced and you will be receiving excellent experience and feedback.
..........Traci
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Guest
I'm sorry your kitty has had a seizure. I do agree with Traci that the CT would be very beneficial in determining or ruling out causes of the seizure. Sometimes seizures are idiopathic, meaning there is no known cause and will then be ruled as idiopathic epilepsy. I'm not sure why your vet is leaning towards the opinion of a brain tumor, but the CT will determine if there is one.
I have some links on Epilepsy/Seizures under the Neurological section of my website (Debbie's Feline Health) listed under Favorites on the menu on the left side of the board that may be of interest.
I hope what ever is causing your kitty to have seizures will be diagnosed and easily treated. Please keep up posted, ok?
(This was posted by me...Auntie Debbie)
I have some links on Epilepsy/Seizures under the Neurological section of my website (Debbie's Feline Health) listed under Favorites on the menu on the left side of the board that may be of interest.
I hope what ever is causing your kitty to have seizures will be diagnosed and easily treated. Please keep up posted, ok?
(This was posted by me...Auntie Debbie)
glad to see you made it on board, you will find a lot of help here. Best of luck with your cat--
Last edited by MA on Fri May 09, 2003 2:05 am, edited 1 time in total.
The smallest feline is a masterpiece.
Leonardo da Vinci
Leonardo da Vinci
Cat with seizures
I can only add that I had an operatoin for my cat which cost over $1,000 and I am glad I did.
Is there maybe another option for getting the scan done closer to your home? If not perhaps you could make him a soft bed in a carrier. The trip is about 21/2 hours.
I do hope your precious kitty will be stable until you can get him a diagnosis and treatment schedule which will work to stabilize him.
Good luck with whatever decision you may make.
Mona
Is there maybe another option for getting the scan done closer to your home? If not perhaps you could make him a soft bed in a carrier. The trip is about 21/2 hours.
I do hope your precious kitty will be stable until you can get him a diagnosis and treatment schedule which will work to stabilize him.
Good luck with whatever decision you may make.
Mona
Sorry to hear about your kitty, my question though is has there been more than one siezure? One siezure really dosen't indicate a problem. When I worked for 2 years at a Small Animal Emergency Clinic with 10 doctors they all advised the owner to keep a log of when the activity occurs, duration, possible causes before siezure, etc. Some pets have siezures just due to a door slaming and scaring them or a thunderstorm. If you are past that point with the log and to the stage of medication control many pets with epilepsy have a good quality of life on long term medication. The siezure in and of itself is not dangerous, just scary to you. The danger is prolonged duration of the siezure increasing the body temp and causing brain damage. I hope this helps.
Jenn
Jenn
Jenn, Pam indicated there were at least 2 seizures, and her vet obviously has reason to suggest a CT, he is probably basing this on health history, symptoms presented, lab values, and inability to find the cause. Each seizure case is different, in that the treatment varies per individual.
Technically, the goal is to prevent more than 2-3 seizures in a 3 month time frame. Depending on the type of seizure depends on the treatment approach. For cluster seizures, treatment is indicated. For grand mal, of course, treatment is indicated with possible extensive diagnostics to rule out other pysiological causes. If a pet only has one seizure in such a time frame, treatment may not be initiated simply due to idiopathic origin and infrequency of the seizure, but if seizure activity persists, treatment is applied to minimize the occurance and testing usually proceeds during the course of treatment (also need to test routinely while on phenobarbitol)
Given the age of Pam's kitty, and the sudden occurance of the seizure activity, a CT or MRI would be a common option/approach. In the event there is a tumor, and it is within an operable area, this may be of great significance. I would rather have peace of mind going that extra step to confirm, than blindly treat the unknown.
Technically, the goal is to prevent more than 2-3 seizures in a 3 month time frame. Depending on the type of seizure depends on the treatment approach. For cluster seizures, treatment is indicated. For grand mal, of course, treatment is indicated with possible extensive diagnostics to rule out other pysiological causes. If a pet only has one seizure in such a time frame, treatment may not be initiated simply due to idiopathic origin and infrequency of the seizure, but if seizure activity persists, treatment is applied to minimize the occurance and testing usually proceeds during the course of treatment (also need to test routinely while on phenobarbitol)
Given the age of Pam's kitty, and the sudden occurance of the seizure activity, a CT or MRI would be a common option/approach. In the event there is a tumor, and it is within an operable area, this may be of great significance. I would rather have peace of mind going that extra step to confirm, than blindly treat the unknown.
..........Traci