Posted by:
meow2me
at Sun Dec 31 14:11:28 2006 [ Email Message ] [ Show All Posts by meow2me ]
>>diagnosed with dilated cardiomyopathy
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>>
>>So how does this exactly affect the heart? Romeo died of degenerative cardiomyopathy, but we knew of if from the first time we went to the vet at about 4 months of age. She said it was a result of his general poor condition the first few months of his life. Does the term dilated refer to the heart swelling inward?
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>>Elizabeth
So sorry, Elizabeth, about Romeo. 
There are several forms of cardiomyopathy. They are dilated (DCM), hypertrophic (HCM) and restrictive (RCM). I don't know very much about them. In DCM, the heart muscle is weaker and the chambers dilate. The heart becomes less capable of pumping blood and the cats go into heart failure. In HCM, the muscle becomes thicker and the chambers smaller. I think the result is the same: heart failure due to inefficient pumping. Voodoo has been in heart failure for over a year now. She takes a number of medications to help her heart pump, but the one that keeps the fluid down is a diuretic (furosemide) sold as lasix. The medications are similar as those for humans with cardiomyopathy.
I am not sure what causes cardiomyopathy. Certainly early nutrition might have an effect on the heart. And many people do not find out their cats are sick until they are beyond help. Some breeds are more susceptible than others, suggesting a hereditary component. HCM is by far the most common and, if you remember Lisa (Bengal Lover), her cat Lightning is still alive and was diagnosed with HCM many years ago. DCM used to be more common before supplementation of commercial food with taurine. Taurine is an uncommon amino acid that cats can not make. Humans can, so we don't need it in our diet. What it does for the heart, I am not sure. According to Voodoo's cardiologist, there are no studies suggesting that taurine supplementation in cats that do not have a taurine deficiency is helpful. Voodoo's case, then, would be labeled "idiopathic."
I am sure this is more than you probably wanted to know!! I suppose if you knew what type of cardiomyopathy Romeo had, you might be able to figure out whether nutrition played a role.
http://www.fabcats.org/cardiomyopathy.html
http://www.serve.com/BatonRouge/taurine_chmr.htm
Take care,
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ellen
gracie, voodoo, Puss 'n Boots.... & Willow!
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RE: raw food and allergies (long) - meow2me, Sun Dec 31 14:11:28 2006