Radiographic, ultrasonographic, and endoscopic findings in cats with inflammatory bowel disease of the stomach and small intestine: 33 cases (1990-1997)

Objective-To characterize imaging findings in cats with confirmed inflammat ory bowel disease (IBD) of the upper gastrointestinal tract tie, stomach an d small intestine) and relate these findings to clinical signs and histolog ic changes. Design-Retrospective study. Animals-33 cats with clinical and histopathologic diagnoses of IBD. Procedure-Medical records were reviewed for signalment, clinical signs, cli nicopathologic findings, radiographic and ultrasonographic findings, and re sults of endoscopic examination. Histologic findings were reviewed and char acterized by severity and type of inflammatory infiltrate. Results-All cats had 1 or more clinical signs leg, vomiting, diarrhea, weig ht loss, and anorexia) consistent with IBD. Lymphocytic and plasmacytic inf iltrates were observed in histologic sections of gastrointestinal tissue. C rypt distortion, villous blunting and fusion, and fibrosis were most common ly seen in cats with moderate or severe IBD. Clinicopathologic findings of some cats included anemia, leukocytosis or leukopenia, hypocholesterolemia, and hyper- or hypoproteinemia. Abnormalities were not found on abdominal r adiographic views in 9 of 9 cats. However, contrast studies using barium re vealed radiographic abnormalities in 1 of 3 cats. in 13 of 17 cats, abdomin al ultrasonography revealed several intestinal abnormalities leg, poor inte stinal wall layer definition, focal thickening) and large mesenteric lymph nodes with hypoechoic changes consistent with IBD. Endoscopic observation r evealed findings leg, erythema, plaques, mucosal friability) consistent wit h inflammation in 9 of 18 cats. Conclusions and Clinical Relevance-Compared with endoscopy of the gastroint estinal tract or abdominal radiography, clinical signs and ultrasonographic findings appear to have the best association with histologic grade of IBD in cats.