How Long Can a Cat Live With a Nasal Polyp
Wheezing, sneezing, teary eyes, nasal discharge and the audio of labored animate are amidst the clear indications that a true cat is experiencing an upper respiratory disorder of one kind or another. These signs usually betoken a transient viral infection that volition resolve inside a week or x days.
In some cases, however, the signs volition persist for longer than that, which will lead an afflicted cat'southward veterinary to doubtable an inflammatory polyp in the nasopharyngeal area. This is a benign (noncancerous) mass of tissue that can develop at the back of a true cat'southward mouth above the soft palate, partially obstruct animate.
Inflammatory polyps typically form in the middle ear, the area immediately backside a cat's ear drum. From there, they may either grow downwardly the eustachean tube and into the nasopharyngeal area, or into the external ear canal. While these growths are benign in themselves, they can crusade either animate difficulty or chronic ear canal infections, depending on their location.
Cause is unclear
The specific cause of nasopharyngeal polyps is something of a mystery, co-ordinate to Michael Rock, DVM, an internal medicine specialist at Tufts. Chronic inflammation resulting from viral respiratory infections early in life has been suggested to be the cause. A cat with a viral respiratory infection volition show the classic signs of upper respiratory distress, which will presently resolve; but months or years later, the cat will develop rough, noisy breathing, suggesting that a polyp has developed.
Although nasopharyngeal polyps can develop in cats of all ages and are occasionally diagnosed in elderly cats, Dr. Stone points out that they are most always observed in young adults and occasionally kittens. "The signs will typically include noisy animate, sneezing and gagging," says Dr. Rock. "If ear interest is present, yous're apt to see frequent head shaking and pawing at the ears."
Other indications that a polyp or several polyps are present include head tilting, snoring, unsteady gait and a alter in the cat's voice. "If untreated," he adds, "the clinical signs will persist and are likely to worsen as the polyp enlarges. Involvement of the inner ear may atomic number 82 to head tilt and balance difficulties that will affect the cat'due south quality of life."
The presence of a nasopharyngeal polyp can well-nigh never be made through the concrete examination of a witting animal. "In nearly instances," he says, "the tentative diagnosis can exist confirmed by means of an oral test of the patient under general anesthesia. But in some cases, X-rays or even an advanced imaging technique such equally a CT scan or a rhinoscopy volition be needed."
Treatment options
According to Dr. Stone, two master options are available for the removal of nasopharyngeal polyps: traction avulsion and surgery. "Traction avulsion is the removal of a polyp from an anesthetized cat by gently and steadily pulling on the growth with a small forceps," explains Dr. Stone. "This will cure many cats, although some sources estimate that the growths volition redevelop in 25 percentage or more of patients."
Handling following traction removal relies primarily on the short-term assistants of antibiotics and, possibly, oral steroids or ear drops to reduce the chances of recurrence. Surgery, he notes, is recommended for cats with advanced signs of problems associated with the presence of a polyp — such as a severe head tilt — or with the regrowth of a polyp following traction removal.
The surgery involves opening the middle ear to allow removal of the polyp at its origin. "Surgery of this type should but exist performed by a board-certified veterinary specialist," he advises. With appropriate treatment, the overwhelming majority of nasopharyngeal polyps can exist permanently cured. — Tom Ewing
Source: https://www.tuftscatnip.com/cathealthandmedicine/nasopharyngeal-polyps-in-cats/
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