Factors affecting survival in cats diagnosed with uroabdomen | VETgirl Veterinary Continuing Education Podcasts

In this VETgirl online veterinary CE podcast, we discuss the feline uroabdomen. Uroabdomen simply refers to free urine within the abdominal cavity, which occurs secondary to a breach anywhere in the urinary tract. In cats, the urinary bladder itself is the most common location for a rupture, and it most commonly occurs secondary to trauma (Stafford). The consequences of a uroabdomen can be severe and life-threatening. Common metabolic disturbances include hyponatremia, hyperkalemia, hyperphosphatemia, metabolic acidosis, and azotemia. In a dog, you may see this laboratory work and think of an Addisonian crisis! Importantly, cats that have a palpable bladder or that are still able to void normally could still have a uroabdomen, so do not rule it out based on those findings alone. When faced with such a case, you brilliant clinicians out there are fully prepared to jump into action and stabilize the patient. However, you may not have the best guidance when providing the owners with evidence-based prognostic information. This is because few studies have actually evaluated prognostic factors in feline uroabdomen cases. So, in a study by Hornsey et al entitled "Factors affecting survival to discharge in 53 cats diagnosed with uroabdomen: a single-centre retrospective analysis," the authors sought to evaluate specific factors that are associated with outcome in cats presenting with a uroabdomen. This was a retrospective study, and medical records were reviewed of cats presenting to a veterinary teaching hospital with a uroabdomen between June 2003 and September 2016. Cats that were euthanized within 2 hours of presentation were excluded. Confirmation of a uroabdomen required either sampling and biochemical analysis of the abdominal fluid or contrast radiography with visualization of fluid escaping the urogenital tract. Extensive information was extracted from the medical records, including patient details, diagnostic results, etiology, treatment information, and case outcome. Note that the authors classified uroabdomen etiology in the following four categories: external trauma (road traffic accident, other blunt trauma, or dog fight), iatrogenic (cystocentesis, urinary catheterization, bladder expression, or post-operative), urethral obstruction, and unknown.