Chronic Nasal Discharge in Cats - Part 2
By: Alfred and Miss Patches Marie Kitty
This is the second part in a three part series on
chronic nasal discharge in cats. Please read parts 1
and parts 2 to find out as much information as you
can about this. The links for both other articles
are at the end of this page.
Continued from Part 1:
X-rays should also be taken in order to rule out any broken
bones or other associated facial structure issues. The cat
will often be anesthetized so that the X-ray can be taken
properly. An X-ray of the frontal sinuses and nasal cavity
is hard to get when the cat is awake because it requires
particular angles.
Your veterinarian may also administer a nasal flush to your
cat and then do a biopsy of the collected material. This
material can be cultured to see if there is any bacteria in
it or be studied under the microscope aka cytology to see if
there is any bacteria present in the collected flush
material.
Anesthetics will be administered for these tests so that
your cat's trauma will be reduced. Often all of these tests
and collections will be done at the same time so that the
trauma will be reduced to the cat. Anesthesia is risky, so
as many procedures as can be done while your cat is
anesthetized will be done to minimize risk and shock.
Radiographs can sometimes show a foreign body in a cat's
nasal cavity. But they don't show what the foreign body is
or what can be done to treat it. Endoscopy may be performed
depending upon where the foreign body is located. In other
cases exploratory surgery may be required to see what is
causing the problem.
All of the above test will not detect a food allergy. A food
allergy is tested by using food trials. Food trials are done
by feeding your cat specific hypoallergenic diet for a month
to two months and then seeing how your cat responds.
Depending on the problem that you cat has with CND will
determine how long it takes for testing and curing. Don't be
surprised if all of these tests come back negative. If this
is the case specialized tests may be required to diagnose
what is causing CND.
CND or Chronic Nasal Discharge is almost always a secondary
symptom to some other infection, allergy or disease. It is
important to rule out all disease that may contribute to the
CND. Chronic Nasal Discharge is a particularly nasty
secondary symptom and makes your cat miserable so even if it
takes a few months to diagnose you are better off knowing
the cause so that it can be treated. This will make your cat
more comfortable and perhaps catch something serious that
can be treated so your feline lives longer.
Please see Chronic Nasal Discharge in Cats - Part 3,
and Chronic Nasal Discharge in Cats - Part
1 for
more information.
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