Pulmonary Edema

A cat came in with trouble breathing.  He was panting and open mouth breathing.  Immediately, x-rays were taken of the cat's thorax and it was determined that there was liquid in the lungs.

In medicine, this is known as a Pulmonary Edema.  It is the accumulation of fluids in the interstitium and alveoli of the lungs.  When fluid in the lungs builds up, it hinders the exchange of oxygen and carbon dioxide.  If the blood is not getting oxygen from the lungs and going off to the body without the oxygen, the organs and tissues that need to dispose of their carbon dioxide waste products and pick up more oxygen molecules have difficulty doing so.  Patients with this condition usually show symptoms of heavy, difficult breathing (sometimes breathing through the mouth), shortness of breath, wheezing, and lethargy. 

www.felipedia.org

The most accurate way to diagnose a Pulmonary Edema for any patient is to get a chest x-ray.  When a doctor looks at the x-rays, they can see a white haze or patchy, fluffy fluid infiltrates rather than a dark and clear fully aerated image of the lungs.  In some cases, the patient will also have an enlarged heart.

The patient was then given a diuretic called Lasix (also known as Furosemide) to help remove the fluid.  Diuretics are a type of medication that prevents fluid retention in the body and helps to manage Pulmonary Edema.

Once the patient was stable with diuretics and oxygen, we began to investigate the reasons for the Pulmonary Edema.  Usually Pulmonary Edema is related to heart disease, so an ultrasound was scheduled to determine whether heart disease was the cause.