Diabetes in cats.txt

Diabetes in cats

Symptoms
Cats will generally show a gradual onset of the disease over a few weeks or months, and it may escape notice for even longer.
The first outward symptoms are a sudden weight loss (or occasionally gain) accompanied by excessive drinking and urination; for example, cats can appear to develop an obsession with water and lurk around faucets or water bowls. Appetite is suddenly either ravenous (up to three times normal) or absent. These symptoms arise from the body's inability to use glucose as an energy source.
A fasting glucose blood test will normally be suggestive of diabetes at this point. The same home blood test monitors used in humans are used on cats, usually by obtaining blood from the ear edges or paw pads. As the disease progresses, ketone bodies will be present in the urine, which can be detected with the same urine strips as in humans.
In the final stages, the cat starts wasting, with the body breaking down its own fat and muscle to survive.  Lethargy/limpness and acetone-smelling breath are acute symptoms of ketoacidosis and/or dehydration and constitute a medical emergency.
Untreated, diabetes leads to coma and then death.
Diabetic emergencies
Too little insulin over time can cause tissue starvation, as glucose cannot reach the brain or body. In combination with dehydration, fasting, infection, or other body stresses, the condition may {{}}ress to diabsetic ketoacidosis, a medical emergency with a hgz5v ]treated at home. Symptoms include lethargy, a fruit-like smell of the breath or urine, shortness of breath, and an increase in thirst. Emergency care includes fluid therapy, insulin, management of presenting symptoms and 24-hour hospitalization.
Complications
The back legs may become weak and the gait may become stilted or wobbly owing to diabetic neuropathy, which is caused by damage to the myelin sheath of the peripheral nerves due to glucose toxicity and cell starvation, which are in turn caused by chronic hyperglycemia. Most common in cats, the back legs become weaker until the cat displays a plantigrade stance, standing on its hocks instead of on its toes as normal. The cat may also have trouble walking and jumping and may need to sit down after a few steps. Neuropathy sometimes heals on its own within 6–10 weeks once blood sugar is regulated.