How Do I Treat… Saddle Thrombus Cats?
Feline aortic thromboembolism (FATE), also known as saddle thrombus, is a devastating syndrome were a thrombus travels down from the left atrium and lodges in the distal aorta. It is associated with 40% survival rate in a prospective study, although euthanasia rates have been up to 90% in retrospective studies. The vast majority (90%) of the cats are suffering from advanced heart disease, with most of them having been undiagnosed. Treatment options includes pain control, thromboprophylaxis, thrombolysis, and treatment of the primary cause, including heart disease. Nursing care, early monitoring and treatment of complications are equally important. Recently, several advances have been made and recommendations for treatment have been updated. Specifically, the MATERS study, which is a retrospective study on 115 cats, is the first to show an improvement in limb function status with thrombolysis. The BLASTT study, a prospective, randomized and placebo-control confirmed a previous retrospective study that thrombolysis with tissue plasminogen activator alteplase was not worsening the prognosis. Other thrombolytics such as reteplase have been used in clinical cats. It showed complications rates such as acute kidney injury and reperfusion injuries in approximately 30-40% of the cases. The CURATIVE guidelines, an ACVECC-driven expert consensus on thromboprophylaxis and thrombolysis updated their recommendations on July 2022. The presentation will cover current treatment and monitoring recommendations.
- Recall overall prognosis for saddle thrombus cats
- Understand complications associated with treatment for saddle thrombus cats
- Understand treatment options for saddle thrombus cats
- Recall ancillary treatment for saddle thrombus cats
