Diagnosis of Congestive Heart Failure in Cats Even Tough for a Cardiologist

In cats, diagnosing congestive heart failure (CHF) with confidence is more challenging than in dogs. A complete history and physical exam can be helpful to pinpoint
the cause and help direct treatment. More so than in dogs however, additional diagnostic tests of great value including thoracic radiographs, NT-proBNP testing, and echocardiography are required to obtain the diagnosis with confidence. This abstract will focus on key points of effective CHF diagnosis.

History taking

Determining the cause of respiratory signs such as cough, but more commonly dyspnea or wheezing in cats can be very challenging. Clinical signs of difficulty breathing or cough lasting more than several weeks are more likely to be non-cardiac in origin, giving the grave prognosis of untreated CHF. Cough is a much less common presenting complaint in cats with CHF (compared to dogs), so cough in a cat should heighten the index of suspicion for a non-cardiac cause. Inspiratory stridor may point to upper airway obstruction (e.g., laryngeal paralysis). Paradoxical breathing may result from pleural effusion, and could be related to CHF, among other causes. […]