Síndrome Urológico Felino (SUF)

Generalidades and Etiología (cause)
Signs and symptoms
Diagnosis
Diagnosis differential
Treatment
Prognosis

Generalidades and Etiología
Many and new denominations for the same disease like Disease of Tracto Urinario Inferior Felino (FLUTD), Idiopática Disease of Tracto Urinario Bajo (EITUB) or FUS (or SUF in Spanish) exist abbreviations of Feline Urológico Syndrome. He is very frequent in the male cats, and consists of the crystal formation (river sands) in tinkles it that they cause difficulty to tinkle, tinkles with blood and obstructions of tracto urinary. Between the causes that cause it they are the hereditary factors and mainly the feeding (as we see more ahead).

The crystals can be different types from minerals. Those that they are in the uretrales corks are of estruvita (magnésico phosphate ammonic) in 90% of the cases.
Still it is not known well as it is the cause that takes to form these depositions of mineral origin in the urinary routes, but it is pronounced with more frequency in cats than they eat single dry food of low quality, (not in all the cases, but my personal experience indicates to me that in more of a 95%)

The cats that ingest balanced foods dry, if this takes less water in their meals and they lose more water in his excrements as well, causes one it tinkles more concentrated and it presents/displays an elevated amount of sediment (eye! not all, exist very many animals that eat this type of foods all the life and they do not show the disease) reason why it seted out is that predisponentes factors exist (genetic, castration, obesity), water ingestion reduced in winter, infections, inflammatory reaction of vejiga, etc.) that added to a the dry food of low quality (high percentage of magnesium) contribute between all to that disease (1 + 1+ is pronounced 1= bingo! ).

Signs and symptoms
The main signs of SUF without obstruction are to tinkle frequently, when there is partial or total obstruction of uretra, much difficulty to tinkle and tinkle with blood, a cat that cannot tinkle rambles by the house in anxious state, maúlla, the penis is licked frenetically and short while in a characteristic position can be observed length where it tries to tinkle but stopped (thing that the proprietors usually confuse with constipation.)

Most frequent:
* Disuria (effort and pain to tinkle)
* Polaquiuria (increase in the frequency of the micción but of a chorritos and/or by dripping)
* Hematuria (presence of blood in tinkles it)
* Incontinencia and micción in nonhabitual places
* Others (depression, anorexy, distension and abdominal pain, weakness, vomits, hypotherm and urémico comma).

Diagnosis
Fundamentally, the professional will arrive at the diagnosis by means of a correct inspection and clinical examination. It is probable that next to an analysis of he tinkles complete (physical, chemical, urinary sediment) to confir to me and/or discards the type of calculations and the commitment of the different components from the urinary system.

Other studies that could be used:
1. Culture
2. X-ray (it can help to discard the presence of radiodensos urolitos formed by calcic oxalato estruvita or).
3. Intravenous Urografía.
4. X-rays with resistance
5. Ecografía (to discard other urolitos and defects like divertículos, polyps and neoplasias)
6. Analysis of blood (to see report).

Diagnoses differentials (other things)
The main cause of the feline urológicos signs is the SUF but numerous diseases that cause the same clinical manifestations (disuria and hematuria with or without uretral obstruction) and in many occasions exist the same alterations in the urianálisis:

* Anatomical anomalies of the urinary routes (divertículos congenital or acquired uracales
* Uretrales Estenosis and/or breakage
* Traumatismos urinary routes
* Neurogénicas alterations (disinergia reflects, hipotonía of the detrusor, uretrales espasmos)
* Neoplasias of the urinary routes.
* Upheavals of iatrogénico origin (cateterizaciones, uretrostomías).
* Inflammations of the urinary routes of infectious origin (viral or bacterial) or strictly inflammatory.

Treatment
* A cat with one uretra blocked needs immediate veterinary attention. An obstructed male generally has the expressed penis. The penis can be masajear, rolling it, between the thumb and index, this maneuver can break the cork and allow that the material is eliminated. If this is not successful it requires immediate veterinary attention. In most of the cases a small and flexible catheter (special soundings or abocaht) through uretra to vejiga can be introduced to clear the obstruction, usually under sedative or anesthesia, with or without hidropulsión.
* Intravenous fluids are administered to rehidratar to the animal and to favor the diuresis (that produces tinkles).
* Antimicrobial therapy: Antibiotics. The ITU (Infections of the Urinary Tracto) are present, approximately, in half of the cats with recurrent uretral obstruction, but only in 15% of which they present/display an obstruction for the first time.
* To initiate the dietetic treatment to reduce the urinary magnesium concentration and to manage to acidify tinkles it. (as long as it has been corroborated that the calculations or river sands are of triple phosphate that is of estuvita because they form in tinkles alkaline. If pH of tinkles it stays throughout below 6,5 the day, estruvita crystals do not form).
* The recurrences are common. Then the healing can be fibrosar, reason for which produces a diminution of the uretral light, with more frequency they happen recidivas when the factors (the 1+1+1 remembers?) predisponentes have not been corrected (it is continued administering balanced he himself to him, persists the infection, etc.)
* In the cases of recidivas it can and it must consider an operation in which part of the penis is removed to make but the uretral opening ample and the exit to perine is led. This operation is called perineal uretrostomía.

Prognosis
The prognosis of the uretrales obstructions is reserved, depends much to suitably compensate the metabolic consequences of the urinary obstruction.
It is very important to revert the obstruction as soon as is possible, because the obstruction and the increase of pressure within vejiga are the cause of loss of functional weave of the kidneys (that could be irreversible.)

For more technical information (recommended):

• www.lamascota.com/ar/purina/pal17.htm (article on majorities on the matter)
• www.aamefe.org.ar/suf.html#top (excellent I articulate of the Dr Rubén Taibo on etiologías/causes associated to this disease)

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