Physical diagnosis of osteoarthritis or joint problems in cats, is difficult even for experienced veterinarians. Cats, unlike most dogs, can tolerate severe orthopedic disease due to their small size and natural agility. Cats generally hate being physically handled or manipulated during a clinical examination. The examining veterinarian may have difficulty in determining whether a cat is pulling its foot away because of pain or simply because it doesn’t want to be touched. Cats are also notorious for cowering on the examination table and remaining totally immobile. Due to these obstacles, to diagnose osteoarthritis or joint problems in cats, veterinarians will simply rely on the cat owner’s observations that their pet is not moving around as well as it once did. Veterinarians may rule out osteoarthritis as a diagnosis by having owners treat their cats for osteoarthritis and seeing if the owners note any improvement in their cats’ quality of life.
Changes to osteoarthritis-affected joints in cats are usually subtle. Decreased range of joint motion, commonly seen in dogs, is uncommon in cats. Clinical signs of osteoarthritis in cats include weight loss, loss of appetite, depression, change in general attitude, poor grooming habits, urination or defecation outside the litter pan, and inability to jump on and off objects. Lameness is not as commonly reported by owners, because joints are frequently bilaterally-affected meaning if a joint is affected, the same joint on the other side is also affected, due to this cats can compensate and appear to be walking normally. The most frequently affected joints in cats are the elbows, hips, shoulders, hocks, arthritis of the vertebrae and sternum – the axial skeleton, osteoarthritis in the limbs and the vertebrae is also common.
Several studies have been conducted evaluating radiographic changes associated with osteoarthritis in cats. In general, radiographic changes observed in cats with osteoarthritis are less severe than those observed in dogs with osteoarthritis. In many cases, cats with osteoarthritis have no radiographic changes. At present it is not entirely clear what causes arthritis in cats. Further studies are needed to determine if this is similar to Osteoarthritis in humans, where mechanical damage to the joints may be the main cause in development of the disease, or whether other factors are involved.
