Clinical management and outcome of cats with seizure disorders: 30 cases (1991-1993)

Abstract

Objective: To determine outcome of clinical management of cats with seizure disorders.

Design: Case series.

Animals: 30 cats referred to the Ontario Veterinary College for recurrent seizures.

Procedures: Treatment was dictated by the cat's seizure frequency and by the underlying cause. Cats that were having cluster seizures or status epilepticus at the time of admission were treated orally with phenobarbital and with constant IV administration of diazepam. The other cats were treated with long-term oral administration of phenobarbital if the frequency of their seizures justified it. Follow-up included evaluation of seizure frequency, serum antiepileptic drug concentrations, and hematologic and serum biochemical values. Outcome was documented on the basis of survival and seizure frequency at the end of the followup period, which ranged from 3 to 21 months.

Results: 6 cats were euthanatized without any therapeutic attempts at the owners' request. Twenty of the remaining 24 cats were alive at the time of final follow-up. Seventeen had a good outcome; 11 were not having any more seizures and 6 were having a low frequency of seizures. For 3 other cats, seizures were not well controlled. Four cats had been euthanatized (2 because of intractable seizures, 1 because of postcraniotomy complications, and 1 because the owners did not want to pursue treatment).

Clinical implications: Results suggest that severity of seizure disorder in cats is not a good predictor of outcome and that aggressive treatment is often rewarding, even in the most severe cases.