Feline neurologic syndrom diagnosis?

[fsttrk]

I posted before about my black female 2 year old that had a UTI, or so I thought. I took in a urine sample to my trusted vet this morning and there was nothing wrong with it. I told them her symptoms: peeing teeny tiny spots all of the time, that sometimes there was blood in it. I've done the full course of Clavamox(seems to be a cure all for cats)and now they said it might be feline urologic syndrom and gave me Delta Albaplex(1/2 tablet for two weeks) to give her. I cannot find any info on this and any info would be greatly appreciated.

I just got onto internetvet.com and they said that that medicine was used for dogs and it was only to be givin for the first 48 hours. Now I'm worried! And I still can't find anything on this syndrom...

 

[sandie]

Are you sure the vet didn't say Feline Urologic syndrome?
The drug he gave you hasn't been approved for use in cats. Some vets will use drugs "off label" if they have been proven to be safe. I havn't heard of this drug being used for FUS. There's lots of proticols for treatment, and this isn't one of them. If it were one of my cats, I would tell the vet you don't feel comfortable giving your cat this drug.

 

[fsttrk]

Yes the vet probably did say urologic. The lady that said it has a slight lisp and sometimes you can't understand her that well. What other medication is used with this disorder. And could there be blood in the urine without a urinary tract infection? Is there another test I need to have done? Is this eventually life threatining?

 

[sandie]

As stupid as this sounds, Feline Urologic Syndrome (FUS) is a diagnosis,but it's only called FUS once all normal causes have been ruled out. It really means there is a urinary disorder.
Usually there is blood present in the urine, but no bacteria which rules out a urinary tract infection. There are some laboratory tests they can perform, but they are used to rule out some pretty rare infections. You usually only go with some of these tests if they symptoms persist even with treatment.
The most common drugs for treatement are Amitriptyline,Butorphanol,or Corticosteroids.

 

[fsttrk]

Why would a vet prescribe a anti-depressant like Amitriptyline for a urinary problem? The vet said that if there is no more blood then all I need to worry about is the bladder contractions that is making her go so frequently and probably causing her some pain. Would steroids do that or would that painkiller you mentioned Butorphanol be for that? It seems to me like she would need a muscle relaxer more than anything. I'm sorry about all of the questions, I just don't want to give my baby something that might hurt her or something that she doesn't need. It's hard enough to pill this phsyco cat anyway

!! I read an article on FUS and it said to feed her ONLY tihs certain type of food for the first thirty days. Is this necessary?, and if not what diet would you recomend for her? I'm pushing fluids for now untill I can get back to my vet and ask for another medication. If possible I would like to know what type of drug she needs for the cramping before I get there. I'm so sorry for this long post

, just concerned and wanting to get her all better safely!

 

[fsttrk]

Is there anybody that has had any experiance with this? ANY info on the medication would be great!

 

[sandie]

Amitriptyle is used as an antidepressant, but it also has antiinflammatory, and muscle relaxing properties. The butorphanol is used to help any pain associated with FUS. The steroids have an antiinflammatory effect.
They have used Propantheline(relaxes the bladder), but the dosage it comes in is hard to break down.
The only reason you would use a special diet is if they could say that the fUS is being caused by crystals. Some of the studies suggest that feeding them wet food (high water content) will minimize the signs.

 

[fsttrk]

Thank you for all of the informative information. I hope that my baby girl will cease having pain after I get the right medication. I have to wait untill 'payday' before I go and get it. In the meantime I will try to get her to drink as much water as possible and I bought a top of the line cat food for urinary tract health to lower the ph of her urine. So... hopefully she will be better promptly! Thanks again!