My cat has been diagnosed with Steatitis - looking for cat owners/vets who have experience with steatitis

Hi,
My cat was just diagnosed with steatitis (yellow fat disease)
She stopped moving, stopped eating and had a fever. Also, her white
cell level was very low. An ultrasound showed the inflammation of the
fat. We gave her antibiotics and vitamin E for a week. The next blood
test came back completely normal.
The vets all felt a mass in her abdomen so they decided to do
exploratory surgery yesterday. It turns out that the mass was an
accumulation of fat and that yellow fat is all over (around the kidney,
etc) The surgeon cleaned up as much as she could but could not remove
all of it. The vet called me before the end of surgery to let me know
that my cat definitely has steatitis and she asked me if I wanted them
to put her to sleep while she was under anesthesia. She explained that
it's a rare disease these days, and since my cat never ate fish a day
in her life, it's even more bizarre since it's usually caused by a
vitamin E deficiency from eating tuna.
So the problem we're facing is that no vet at that clinic has had
experience with treating steatitis and even though they know what to
give her (antibitics, vitamin E), they don't know if it will help. We
want to make the best decision for our beloved cat and since steatitis
is very painful, we don't want her to suffer. But we also want to do
everything we can to try and treat it.
Does anyone have experience with steatitis? Did your cat have it and
recover? Did the treatment not work?

I would appreciate any feedback.
Thank you
V

"vrollet" wrote in message
oups.com...
Hi,
My cat was just diagnosed with steatitis (yellow fat disease)
She stopped moving, stopped eating and had a fever. Also, her white
cell level was very low. An ultrasound showed the inflammation of the
fat. We gave her antibiotics and vitamin E for a week. The next blood
test came back completely normal.
The vets all felt a mass in her abdomen so they decided to do
exploratory surgery yesterday. It turns out that the mass was an
accumulation of fat and that yellow fat is all over (around the kidney,
etc) The surgeon cleaned up as much as she could but could not remove
all of it. The vet called me before the end of surgery to let me know
that my cat definitely has steatitis and she asked me if I wanted them
to put her to sleep while she was under anesthesia. She explained that
it's a rare disease these days, and since my cat never ate fish a day
in her life, it's even more bizarre since it's usually caused by a
vitamin E deficiency from eating tuna.
So the problem we're facing is that no vet at that clinic has had
experience with treating steatitis and even though they know what to
give her (antibitics, vitamin E), they don't know if it will help. We
want to make the best decision for our beloved cat and since steatitis
is very painful, we don't want her to suffer. But we also want to do
everything we can to try and treat it.
Does anyone have experience with steatitis? Did your cat have it and
recover? Did the treatment not work?

I would appreciate any feedback.
Thank you
V

Sounds like euthanizing her may have been best for her.

"vrollet" wrote in message
oups.com...
Hi,
My cat was just diagnosed with steatitis (yellow fat disease)
She stopped moving, stopped eating and had a fever. Also, her white
cell level was very low. An ultrasound showed the inflammation of the
fat. We gave her antibiotics and vitamin E for a week. The next blood
test came back completely normal.
The vets all felt a mass in her abdomen so they decided to do
exploratory surgery yesterday. It turns out that the mass was an
accumulation of fat and that yellow fat is all over (around the kidney,
etc) The surgeon cleaned up as much as she could but could not remove
all of it. The vet called me before the end of surgery to let me know
that my cat definitely has steatitis and she asked me if I wanted them
to put her to sleep while she was under anesthesia. She explained that
it's a rare disease these days, and since my cat never ate fish a day
in her life, it's even more bizarre since it's usually caused by a
vitamin E deficiency from eating tuna.
So the problem we're facing is that no vet at that clinic has had
experience with treating steatitis and even though they know what to
give her (antibitics, vitamin E), they don't know if it will help. We
want to make the best decision for our beloved cat and since steatitis
is very painful, we don't want her to suffer. But we also want to do
everything we can to try and treat it.
Does anyone have experience with steatitis? Did your cat have it and
recover? Did the treatment not work?

I would appreciate any feedback.
Thank you
V


Hi. I have no experience with this disease, but looked around and
found these links that talk about treating steatitis with diet and
vitamin e:

http://tinyurl.com/bc6bs

I assume you chose not to euthanize her. I think you are
wise to be concerned that she may be in pain, but also
think you are right to see if you can treat this. Since she
has been through the surgery, it seems a shame not to
try. I wish I could help you more.

"vrollet" wrote in message
oups.com...
Hi,
My cat was just diagnosed with steatitis (yellow fat disease)
She stopped moving, stopped eating and had a fever. Also, her white
cell level was very low. An ultrasound showed the inflammation of the
fat. We gave her antibiotics and vitamin E for a week. The next blood
test came back completely normal.
The vets all felt a mass in her abdomen so they decided to do
exploratory surgery yesterday. It turns out that the mass was an
accumulation of fat and that yellow fat is all over (around the kidney,
etc) The surgeon cleaned up as much as she could but could not remove
all of it. The vet called me before the end of surgery to let me know
that my cat definitely has steatitis and she asked me if I wanted them
to put her to sleep while she was under anesthesia. She explained that
it's a rare disease these days, and since my cat never ate fish a day
in her life, it's even more bizarre since it's usually caused by a
vitamin E deficiency from eating tuna.
So the problem we're facing is that no vet at that clinic has had
experience with treating steatitis and even though they know what to
give her (antibitics, vitamin E), they don't know if it will help. We
want to make the best decision for our beloved cat and since steatitis
is very painful, we don't want her to suffer. But we also want to do
everything we can to try and treat it.
Does anyone have experience with steatitis? Did your cat have it and
recover? Did the treatment not work?

I would appreciate any feedback.
Thank you
V


Hi. I have no experience with this disease, but looked around and
found these links that talk about treating steatitis with diet and
vitamin e:

http://tinyurl.com/bc6bs

I assume you chose not to euthanize her. I think you are
wise to be concerned that she may be in pain, but also
think you are right to see if you can treat this. Since she
has been through the surgery, it seems a shame not to
try. I wish I could help you more.

Thank you. We definitely want to try that treatment (antibiotics,
vitamin E and possibly steroids) but I'd really like to hear from other
owners who have gone through it and find out if it was successful, how
long it took for their cat to get better. I don't want to treat her
for a long time if it's not going to be helpful in the long run.
It's such a difficult decision to make...
Thanks for your reply.

"vrollet" wrote in message
oups.com...
Thank you. We definitely want to try that treatment (antibiotics,
vitamin E and possibly steroids) but I'd really like to hear from other
owners who have gone through it and find out if it was successful, how
long it took for their cat to get better.

I understand. Please consider posting to alt.med.veterinary.
There are actually some vets who post there.

I don't want to treat her
for a long time if it's not going to be helpful in the long run.
It's such a difficult decision to make...

I know. She is a beloved member of the family, and totally
dependent upon you. It is very hard.

Thanks for your reply.


I just wish I could help. Please keep us posted, as your experience may help
others.

I would ask my vet to contact a vet university for an idea of how well
treatment works. They can consult. I've not heard of another cat having this
on this board. I'm really sorry She may have some underlying genetic
problem that prevents her from absorbing the nutrient.


"vrollet" wrote in message
oups.com...
Thank you. We definitely want to try that treatment (antibiotics,
vitamin E and possibly steroids) but I'd really like to hear from other
owners who have gone through it and find out if it was successful, how
long it took for their cat to get better. I don't want to treat her
for a long time if it's not going to be helpful in the long run.
It's such a difficult decision to make...
Thanks for your reply.

I don't have experience with steatitis, but I've been doing some reading
on Vitamin E and if you are giving a basic synthetic version it would
help to switch to a natural version. Apparently synthetic E only
supplies part of the entire Vitamin E complex.

From DVM News Magazine:

"For pets, natural vitamin E is better than synthetic. It functions
better to provide their enhanced antioxidant needs.
From mice to elephants it has been shown that natural vitamin E has more
punch, more 'bounce per ounce' than synthetic. It has recently been
shown (Stone et al , 2003) that human infants similarly discriminate
between natural and synthetic vitamin E.

There are physiological differences in its absorption, transport,
utilization and tissue retention. Though past research has shown that
natural vitamin E is 36 percent better than synthetic, current research
in several species, including humans, shows a 200-300 percent potency of
natural versus synthetic vitamin E. "


Natural E should say "mixed tocopherols" on the label, although some
manufacturers use this term to mean the synthetic D-alpha-tocopherol, so
make sure to look closely at the label. Natural tocopherols come as
D-alpha, D-gamma, D-delta, and D-beta-tocopherols.

Administration of vegetable and mineral oil can interfere with Vitamin E
absorption, as can constant administration of some hairball remedies. If
you are giving any kind of gel hairball remedy or oil I would stop that
immediately and give Papaya enzyme instead. It comes in pill form and is
available at any health food store. One pill every other day or twice a
week should be sufficient. Feeding a strictly canned food diet is also
helpful in decreasing hairballs.

It would also be worthwhile to have your vet refer you to an internal
medicine specialist. They are more likely to have experience in this
area. I hope you can can find an effective treatment plan that will get
your kitty feeling better soon.

Megan



"The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do
nothing."

-Edmund Burke

Learn The TRUTH About Declawing
http://www.stopdeclaw.com

Zuzu's Cats Photo Album:
http://www.PictureTrail.com/zuzu22

"Concerning all acts of initiative (and creation), there is one
elementary truth the ignorance of which kills countless ideas and
splendid plans: that the moment one definitely commits oneself, then
providence moves too. A whole stream of events issues from the decision,
raising in one's favor all manner of unforeseen incidents, meetings and
material assistance, which no man could have dreamt would have come his
way."

- W.H. Murray

One more question:
What had you been feeding your cat for the last month before diagnosis?
What are you feeding her now?

Also, Steatitis can take several weeks and sometimes months to resolve
completey, so hang in there.

Megan



"The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do
nothing."

-Edmund Burke

Learn The TRUTH About Declawing
http://www.stopdeclaw.com

Zuzu's Cats Photo Album:
http://www.PictureTrail.com/zuzu22

"Concerning all acts of initiative (and creation), there is one
elementary truth the ignorance of which kills countless ideas and
splendid plans: that the moment one definitely commits oneself, then
providence moves too. A whole stream of events issues from the decision,
raising in one's favor all manner of unforeseen incidents, meetings and
material assistance, which no man could have dreamt would have come his
way."

- W.H. Murray

We've been feeding her Hills' Prescription Diet i/d - dry food - (she
was put on that diet by her vet a couple of years ago)
She never eats any other food, and never any fish.
Do you have a pet who suffered from steatitis?