HEPATOBILIARY DISEASES IN THE CAT

The symptoms of hepatobiliary diseases in the cat are often unspecific . For this reason, laboratory investigations, ultrasound diagnostics a nd liver biopsy are of major concern. Important laboratory parameters are, besides haematological examinations, the measurement oft the ALT, GLDH, GGT, ammonium and bile acid. Moreover, function tests like the ammonium tolerance test and the pre- and postprandial measurement of b ile acid are indicative of liver function. In this paper the most impo rtant liver diseases of the cat are reviewed with respect to their fre quencies: cholangitis-cholangiohepatitis syndrome including obstructiv e-biliary duct disease, feline hepatic lipidosis and neoplasms of the hepatocytes and bile ducts, infectious fiver disease and portosystemic shunt.