Bilateral renal histiocytic sarcoma with disseminated lung involvement in a Siberian Forest Cat.

Case summary: A 5-year-old female neutered Siberian Forest Cat presented with a 7-day history of lethargy, hyporexia and weight loss. Abdominal ultrasonography revealed bilateral renal changes suggestive of neoplasia. Thoracic radiography documented diffuse pulmonary nodules. The cat was euthanased during diagnostic investigations. Histopathological assessment and immunohistochemical staining of post-mortem renal biopsies were consistent with a histiocytic lesion, most likely histiocytic sarcoma (HS). The lung lesions were suspected of representing disseminated disease. Relevance and novel information: HS is considered a rare neoplastic process in cats. This report describes a case of feline bilateral renal HS with suspected concomitant pulmonary involvement. A primary renal origin was suspected, with the lung lesions being a result of disseminated disease. Renal HS should be included as a differential diagnosis when renal ultrasonography reveals changes suggestive of neoplasia.

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In collaboration with the American College of Veterinary Radiology.

Treatment failure in hyperthyroid cats after radioiodine (I-131) injection.

BACKGROUND: There is limited published information on the outcome for cats where total thyroxine concentration (TT4) remains elevated after treatment with radioactive iodine (RAI). OBJECTIVE: To determine the frequency of, and predictors for, subsequent treatment failure in cats for which TT4 remains elevated at hospital discharge, and to report clinical outcomes for cats requiring repeat treatment. ANIMALS: One hundred twenty-one cats with TT4 ≥40 nmol/L after treatment with RAI (out of an original, treated study sample of 959 cats). METHODS: Retrospective study. Data regarding signalment, weight, TT4 concentration (before RAI treatment, at discharge, and percentage change), day of sampling, and I-131 dose were acquired. Logistic regression was performed to evaluate predictors of treatment failure. RESULTS: In the 87 cats for which classification was possible, 35 (40%) became euthyroid without further treatment. All TT4 variables and weight normalized RAI dose were independently predictive of subsequent treatment failure. In multivariate analysis, TT4 concentration at discharge (P < .001) and weight normalized RAI dose (P = .04) remained in the final model. All 28 cats with TT4 concentration ≥150 nmol/L at discharge ultimately failed treatment, compared with 13/40 (32.5%) and 11/19 (57.9%) cats with TT4 concentrations of 40-100 nmol/L and 100-150 nmol/L, respectively. Of the 52 cats that failed treatment, 14 were subsequently managed medically, 12 underwent thyroidectomy (4 with carcinoma), 14 had repeat RAI treatment which was successful in 12/14 (86%) cats, and 13 had no further treatment. CONCLUSIONS AND CLINICAL IMPORTANCE: Cats with TT4 >150 nmol/L at discharge after RAI might be candidates for immediate repeat treatment.

Cardiac auscultation skills in final year veterinary students and recent veterinary graduates, referral hospital veterinary surgeons and veterinary cardiologists or cardiology residents.

BACKGROUND: Cardiac auscultation is an important part of the physical examination. This study evaluated cardiac auscultation skills in veterinary students and compared their abilities to recent veterinary graduates, referral hospital veterinary surgeons and veterinary cardiologists or cardiology residents. In addition it compared their self-predicted quiz scores to their actual scores, evaluating if they could accurately predict their own performance level. METHODS: A digital recording device was used to record auscultation sounds from 12 different patients with a diagnosis confirmed by a board-certified veterinary cardiologist. The sound files and associated phonocardiograms were uploaded to a video sharing website. A cloud-based online multiple-choice quiz was generated and shared with final year veterinary students, recent veterinary graduates, referral hospital veterinary surgeons and veterinary cardiologists or cardiology residents. RESULTS: There were 128 participants: 51 final year veterinary students, 62 recent veterinary graduates, and 10 referral hospital veterinary surgeons and five veterinary cardiologists or cardiology residents. No difference was found between the cardiac auscultation skills of recent veterinary graduates and final year veterinary students. Veterinary students' self-predicted scores were lower than actual scores. CONCLUSIONS: Recent veterinary graduates did not perform better than final year veterinary students in this study, suggesting that auscultation skills do not continue to improve in the first few years after graduation. Efforts should be made to maximise students' learning in cardiac auscultation skills. Veterinary students show a lack of confidence in cardiac auscultation skills.

Gastroesophageal intussusception and extreme esophageal dilatation secondary to bilateral laryngeal paralysis in a cat.

Gastroesophageal intussusception, extreme esophageal dilatation, and laryngeal paralysis are individually rare clinical entities in cats and the simultaneous occurrence in a single animal has not been described. We describe these 3 conditions occurring concurrently in a geriatric cat, and resolution of the cat's clinical signs after treatment with unilateral arytenoid lateralization. This finding supports the need for thorough history taking and examination in cats with extreme esophageal dilatation to determine if upper respiratory tract abnormalities are present, as appropriate treatment might resolve the esophageal dilatation.