A case of diffuse enteropathy in an 8-year-old cat

Abstract

An 8-year-old female spayed, domestic shorthair cat presented to Cornell University Hospital for Animals for an acute onset of vomiting, weight loss and progressive anorexia. Physical examination showed moderate dehydration, poor body condition and thickened intestinal loops. Blood results revealed panhypoproteinemia, low cobalamin and low folate levels. Abdominal ultrasound identified a mildly thick small intestine with altered wall layering along with enlarged jejunal lymph nodes. A diagnosis of gastrointestinal lymphoma could not be made cytologically from jejunal lymph node aspirates. Owners elected for intestinal biopsies via endoscopy. Histopathology revealed a moderate lymphoplasmacytic and eosinophilic enteritis with enterocyte loss and attenuation, severe villous atrophy and crypt hyperplasia with no evidence of enteric neoplasia. An esophagostomy tube was placed and the patient was tube fed with Hills A/D. She initially responded positively to treatment of oral prednisolone. A presumptive diagnosis of feline inflammatory bowel disease was made based on clinical signs, blood work, abdominal ultrasound findings and histopathology results.