Chronic Nasal Discharge in Cats - Part 3
By: Alfred and Miss Patches Marie Kitty
If the CND is caused by one of the two known viruses that
cause these symptoms in cats, it is often incurable. What
happens is that if a virus persists in the cat's system
without the cat's immune system being able to fight it off,
it will lead to long-term viral sinusitis/rhinitis.
Currently there are no drugs that will treat these types of
viral infections, however a drug called interferon has been
shown to stimulate the immune system's response and reduce
virus replication in the system. Natural healing methods of
strengthening the immune system are said to help in these
case as well.
If a bacterial infection is found to be causing the CND then
antibiotics will be used to treat the infection. If the
bacteria is in the nasal area or sinuses the bacterial
infection is very hard to kill because the bacteria often
gets lodged in the turbinates. Cats have been known to show
improvement while on antibiotics but once the treatment is
discontinued the symptoms come back. But normally, giving
the cat Interferon and antibiotics is enough to kill the
infection.
If CND is caused by a fungal infection it most likely is
caused by Cryptococcus Neoformans fungus. The treatment for
this type of fungal infection is very expensive, so
treatment will not be usually be given until the fungus
infection is firmly diagnosed. These antifungal drugs can
cause adverse side effects. If your cat has an irregular
immune system due to FLV or FIV then its chances of
recovering from infection by this fungus are not very
favorable.
If tumors are causing the CND then complete removal of the
nasal cavity and sinuses may be needed. Nasal tumors are
very dangerous and almost always malignant. Chemotherapy and
radiation may be considered as well. Unfortunately chances
of recovering are slim and almost always the cancer will
come back. Veterinarians that want to do a biopsy often will
take as much of the suspected tumor as possible and this can
improve your cat's symptoms for several months.
Inflammatory polyps are masses of tissue that are non-
cancerous and are made up of cells that are inflamed.
Surgery is often used to remove inflammatory polyps and is
most often successful. However if not all of the polyp is
removed then regrowth will occur. The surgery that is
required to remove them is extensive and often not all of
the polyp can be removed since the polyp usually will grow
from the inner ear down through the Eustachian tube into the
back of the nose.
If the cause is a foreign body like a piece of grass or some
other foreign material having gotten lodged into the nasal
cavity then the membrane that lines the nose will produce a
lot of mucus in order to try and dislodge the foreign body.
Cats that are affected by this will often sneeze often and
violently in trying to get the foreign body out of the nasal
cavity.
If the foreign body cannot be expelled through mucus or
sneezing then the veterinarian may perform endoscope and
take radiographs. Surgery may be needed to remove the
foreign body. If it is removed then your cat will recover
and prognosis is good.
If all other diagnoses fail then a food allergy trial may be
needed in order to determine whether the cause of the CND is
actually a food allergy. Your cat will be switched to a
hypoallergenic diet and it should not be allowed to eat
anything aside from this diet food. After a while new foods
can be added and the cat observed for a while to see if the
new food is the particular allergen. If a good diet is found
and the cat tolerates it then it should be on that diet the
rest of its life. The cat should then lead a relatively
normal life and recover from the CND.
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