Bacteriuria in cats with feline lower urinary tract disease: A clinical study of 134 cases in Norway

Abstract

Feline lower urinary tract disease (FLUTD) is considered to be one of the most common diagnoses in feline patients. Several authors have concluded that feline idiopathic cystitis is the most common cause of FLUTD, whereas infectious cystitis is diagnosed in only 2% of the cases. In the period from January 2003 to February 2005, 134 cats that presented with signs of lower urinary tract disorders were included in a study at the Norwegian School of Veterinary Science. Ninety-seven percent were first opinion cases. All the cats went through a physical examination, and blood samples were collected for haematology and clinical chemistry. The urine analysis included urine stix, specific gravity, microscopic examination of the sediment and microbiological culturing. The urine samples were collected as voided mid-stream urine samples, by catheter or by cystocentesis and the method used was registered. Of the 134 cats included in the study, 37% were diagnosed as having obstructive and 63% as having non-obstructive FLUTD. In total 44 cats (33%) were diagnosed with bacteriuria, exceeding 10(3) colony forming units per millilitre (cfu/ml) and 33 (25%) of these cats had bacterial growth exceeding 10(4) cfu/ml, either alone or in combination with crystals and/or uroliths. Six cats (18%) with bacterial growth exceeding 10(4) cfu/ml were older than 8 years. No significant difference was found between the sampling methods performed with regard to bacteriuria. This study indicates that bacteriuria may have been underdiagnosed in Norwegian cats with clinical signs of FLUTD. It also confirms the importance of microbiological culturing in first opinion cases with FLUTD and that a skilled operator can get representative samples regardless the choice of method.

Urethral Stenting in a Cat with Refractory Obstructive Feline Lower Urinary Tract Disease

“…Urethral plugs have large amounts of matrix and minerals (usually struvite) and any crystalline material is disorganized. The general features of urolithiasis are similar for cats and dogs although struvite uroliths in cats are less associated with bacterial infections [6,7].Although the successful treatment of iFLUTD is often achieved with the removal of dry diets, stress reduction and increased water supply after re-canalization with indwelling urethral catheterization and warm saline flushing [5,7]. However, iFLUTD often re-occurs and progresses to refractory iFLUTD, which requires perineal urethrostomy to permanently relieve recurrent obstructions in male cats [5,7].…”

“…This has led to numerous terms such as feline urologic syndrome (FUS), feline interstitial cystitis (FIC; based on similarities with the human condition) and idiopathic feline lower urinary tract disease (iFLUTD) [8,16]. It is reported that 70% of non-obstructive LUTD is idiopathic and that 25% is due to cystoliths [6]. Obstructive causes of LUTD are usually intraluminal with the majority caused by urethral plugs rather than uroliths.…”

“…Urethral plugs have large amounts of matrix and minerals (usually struvite) and any crystalline material is disorganized. The general features of urolithiasis are similar for cats and dogs although struvite uroliths in cats are less associated with bacterial infections [6,7].…”

Características Epidemiológicas, Clínicas E Laboratoriais De Gatos Com Sinais De Doença Do Trato Urinário Inferior

“…Estudos recentes indicam que E. coli e Staphylococcus felis, além de Enterococcus faecalis são os uropatógenos mais comuns em gatos com SDTUI (EGGERTSDÓTTIR et al, 2007;LITSTER et al, 2007;SAEVIK et al, 2011). Dos sete gatos com a cistite bacteriana, quatro tinham infecção por E. coli e três por Staphylococcus spp.…”

Doença do trato urinário inferior felino

“…No entanto, todos esses animais haviam sido submetidos à sondagem uretral prévia para desobstrução, o que fatalmente poderia ter propiciado a instalação e proliferação dos agentes infecciosos . Eggertsdóttir et al (2007) verificaram que 33% dos gatos da Noruega com DTUIF tinham bacteriúria que excedeu 103 UFC/ml, e em 25% desses gatos, a bacteriúria excedeu 104 UFC/ml, sem diferença significativa quanto ao método de coleta para cultura, e sendo mais freqüente em fêmeas. Os autores relacionaram este alto índice com a possibilidade de infecção secundária ao comportamento de acasalamento, já que na Noruega, a maioria dos gatos tem acesso ao exterior das casas, que é intensificado em épocas de verão.…”