What Is Veterinary Diagnostic Imaging For Felines?

Veterinary diagnostic imaging includes radiographs (x-rays), ultrasound, MRIs and CT scans, all of which are used as diagnostic tools to collect information on your cat's health. The vast majority of imaging is non-invasive and completely painless. However, some imaging may require sedation or even anesthesia because the cat must be kept still to allow for adequate images to be produced. Veterinarians use these images to collect information on your cat to help them to make a medical and sometimes surgical plan.

When Is Veterinary Diagnostic Imaging Necessary For Your Cat?

After your veterinarian has examined your cat, he or she may want to begin to collect more information that will lead to a diagnosis and then, a treatment plan. Radiographs are usually a first line of imaging. The radiograph may lead to a diagnosis which allows them to move forward with a plan. However, sometimes the next step may be ultrasound to get a more thorough or specific look at a particular area of the body.

For instance, if your cat is vomiting and feeling ill, you veterinarian may take a radiogrpaph to look for possible causes such as obstruction of intestines or an obvious foreign body. The x-ray may show some signs of an intestinal obstruction, however, before proceeding to surgery, it would be prudent in some cases to follow with an abdominal ultrasound. The ultrasound will give more detail of the area and therefore allow more confidence of the treatment plan to move forward with surgery. Occasionally, radiograph and ultrasound allow for a definitive diagnosis but other times they will simply add more information to help put the puzzle together for the best treatment plan for your cat.

The four types of Veterinary Diagnostic Imaging our veterinarians may utilize to assist in diagnosis of your cat's condition are:

• Radiographs

• MRIs

• Ultrasounds

• CT Scans

More information on each of these types of radiographs is provided below.

*Note: Perkins County Veterinary Hospital currently does not perform MRIs or CT Scans

Cat Radiographs

Cat radiographs have been in use throughout the medical community for many decades. cat radiographs are by far the most regularly used form of diagnostic imaging in the veterinary industry because they are cost effective (comparatively speaking), and they can accurately diagnose the state of skeletal structure and composition, large body cavities, and the presence of many foreign objects. Cat radiographs are totally painless, but some cats can benefit from sedation to reduce anxiety and stress.

Cat radiographs usually proceed as follows:

• The cat is placed on the radiograph table

• A technician positions the radiograph machine so that the radiograph beam targets only the area of interest

• Modern radiograph equipment allow for low levels of radiation and when used only occasionally are perfectly safe for your cat.

• Because cat radiograph are static images, the procedure usually requires less time than a procedure like an MRI

Cat radiograph have traditionally been captured on actual film, and still can be when necessary. However, our x-ray images are now digital which allows us to capture the images on a secure server that our veterinarians can access at any time, and can also share with specialists, if necessary

Cat Ultrasounds

A cat ultrasound is the second most common type of diagnostic imaging tool veterinarians use to diagnose a cat's medical condition. Ultrasounds use soundwaves to examine and photograph internal tissues in real time. An ultrasound allows a veterinarian to see into a cat's body in real time, allowing for easy viewing of organs from different angles that are not easily achieved through radiograph. The functioning of various organs can be observed to determine if they are malfunctioning.

A cat ultrasound procedure usually proceeds as follows:

• A cat ultrasound technician gently presses a small probe against the cat's body that emits digital sound waves

• The sound waves are directed to various parts of the cat's abdominal area by manually shifting the probe's position

• The sound beam changes velocity while passing through varying body tissue density, which causes echoes

• Our ultrasound equipment converts these echoes into electrical impulses that are then further transformed into a digital image that represents the appearance of the tissues

• These images can be viewed in real time by a veterinarian, as well as stored for further review at any time

In modern scanning systems like the ones Perkins County Veterinary Hospital has on-site and uses on our feline patients, the sound beam sweeps through the body many times per second. This produces a dynamic, real-time image that changes as the cat ultrasound device moves across a cat's body. We can use the results of an ultrasound to determine what is ailing your cat, and to devise the most effective treatment protocol.

Common symptoms that may cause a veterinary to use ultrasound include: vomiting, weight loss, kidney impairment or blockage and heart disease

How Feline Radiographs Influence Veterinary Recommendations

The goal of feline radiographs is to ascertain a diagnosis, or obtain a final answer without having to perform further, more invasive tests or procedures. For example, an radiograph might show evidence of a tumor of the spine and possibly involve the surrounding muscle. The addition of an MRI would reveal the specific tumor and the extent that the tumor extends into the surrounding muscle tissue. This type of information is very important for a prognosis and treatment plan.

Veterinary diagnostic imaging offers an array of incredibly useful tools within a veterinarian's toolkit. Sometimes a diagnostic imaging session can lead to the need for further diagnostics. This is why it is important to understand that diagnostic imaging may lead to a progressive fact-finding mission that must occur in order to diagnose your cat's ailment.