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Category: Feline
Urolithiasis
Urinary bladder calculi, bladder stones
AffectedAnimals:
Dogs and cats. Cats of any age, sex, or breed can develop bladder stones. Struvites, the most common stone type, usually are found among younger adult cats. Calcium oxalate stones occur most often in male cats aged four to nine years old.
Overview:
Bladder stones are rock-hard collections of minerals, clinically known as uroliths, which can rub and irritate the bladder wall, causing it to bleed. As a result of the irritation, the cat may feel like it needs to urinate frequently, even if it has only a small amount of urine to release. Bladder stones may also obstruct urinary flow. A cat that meows or cries while in the litter box may be experiencing bladder stone-related pain.
A variety of minerals can develop into different stone types. Cats will get each of the different stone types for different reasons. The various stones, which are named based on their mineral components, include the following: struvite, calcium oxalate, urate, calcium phosphate, xanthine, and cystine. In cats, struvite is the most frequently encountered stone, accounting for 50 to 65 percent of the stones analyzed. Calcium oxalate, seen in about 20 percent of bladder stone cases, is the second most common type of stone. The other types are uncommon in the cat.
Bladder stones come in many different sizes and shapes. Smaller stones often pose the greatest health risk because they are more likely to obstruct a cat's ability to urinate. Small stones sometimes can escape from the bladder into the exiting canal called the urethra, only to get stuck as the urethra becomes narrower. As a stone becomes wedged, it will block the flow of urine partially or completely, making it difficult or impossible for the cat to urinate. This is the most serious problem associated with bladder stones, because an obstruction of the bladder, if untreated, can lead to irreversible damage to the kidneys, and in turn, death.
The method of treatment and prevention of bladder stones is based on the stone type. A stone usually is collected from the cat and analyzed for its mineral content in order to determine what method should be followed.
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