"Harvey Fielder" wrote in message
...
A few days ago our 14 yr old cat suddenly exhibited signs of suffering
extreme pain (hissing, growling, touch sensitivity, etc.)

Does the pain seem to be confined to one joint or multiple joints? Also,
sometimes distinguishing joint pain from soft tissue trauma (sprain/strain)
can be difficult.


We took her to the
vets - they couldn't find anything specific wrong with her.

Unfortunately, some symptoms, including pain disappear when a cat is nervous
or excited -- especially at the vet's office. However, most of us
intuitively know when our cat is in pain -- even though she doesn't
display her pain in a manner that's obvious to other people. No one knows
your cat better than you -- especially after 14 years -- so if you feel your
cat is in pain -- my money is on your intuition -- I'd seek a second opinion
and further diagnostics.


We feel she may
be suffering from an arthritic condition. Is this common in older cats?
Any
insights gratefully received.

A sudden onset of pain would lead me to suspect either joint trauma or soft
tissue trauma (sprain, strain). Primary arthritis in cats is not that
common. The most common form of "arthritis" seen in the cat is arthrosis -
a progressive joint degeneration with minimal actual inflammation of the
joint. often secondary to trauma or instability.

Since cats are masters at concealing pain, I'd err on the side of caution
and opt for x-rays and ideally, joint fluid analysis. The difference
between inflamÂ*matory and noninflammatory arthropathies is based primarily
on joint fluid analysis. Fluid analysis may help avoid unnecessarily high
steroid therapy.

Whatever you do *please* don't give your cat any human pain/antiinflammatory
drugs without explicit instructions from a vet. Acetaminophen and ibuprofen
are extremely toxic to cats and aspirin dosages must be calculated very
carefully to avoid toxicity.

Good luck,

Phil