The category of heart and lung disease in cats may also encompass an extensive variety of conditions. Congestive heart failure, tumors, bacterial infection, immune reactions, or tumors may all cause lung disease in cats. Further, endomyocarditis or the inflammation of the inner heart lining and muscle is a condition, which develops following a nerve-wracking event. In this article, we will discuss some more important and interesting facts about heart and lung disease in cats including its causes, symptoms, prognosis, and treatments. Read on to learn more about these.
What is Heart and Lung Disease in Cats?

As what we have mentioned earlier, the category of heart and lung disease in cats is too broad and may include a wide variety of conditions. Congestive heart failure, immune reactions, tumors, or bacterial infection may all cause lung condition in cats. Therefore, it is so important to schedule an appointment with a vet straightaway if you happen to suspect that your cat’s suffering from a heart or lung disease, since these conditions might be deadly when not treated professionally.
Unluckily, heart and lung disease in cats may afflict the same as humans do. In the actual fact, more than 1 out of 10 pets being examined by a vet has some kind of heart disease. The heart disease in cats may be existent at birth, or it might be acquired. Common heart conditions, which may affect the cats include arrhythmias, heartworm infection, vascular disease, and myocardial disease.
One kind of heart and lung disease in cats is the inflammation of the inner heart lining and muscle or endomyocarditis. This condition commonly develops due to a stressful event. It’s actually characterized by the inflammation of the innermost part of the heart and interstitial pneumonia. Moreover, pneumonia is commonly austere and typically results to death.
Predominantly, endomyocarditis happens in males, in between the ages of 1 & 4 years old. The development of the endocardial fibroelastosis or left heart failure, in the interim, happens preceding the 6 months of age. The endocardial fibroelastosis is actually an inherited heart disease wherein austere fibrous muscular tissues thickening in the heart may lead to heart failure.
Causes
There are a fairly few kinds of lung and heart conditions in cats that may be divided in two main categories, acquired and congenital. The congenital heart and lung diseases are existent at birth and frequently relate to a distorted or defective lung or heart structure. Though congenital heart and lung imperfections are comparatively rare, some common types of it may include the following:
- Defective heart valves,
- Stenosis or the obstruction of blood flow to or from a certain area of the heart,
- A defect in the heart lining,
- Abnormalities or septal defects in the tissue, which may partition heart chambers, as well as
- Heart murmurs.
Additionally, assimilated heart and lung disease in cats are way more prevalent. Amongst the most common heart and lung conditions in cats include the following:
- Synthetic or pulmonary hypertension,
- Pericardial disease,
- Infective endocarditis,
- Cardiomyopathy,
- Degenerative valve disease,
- Feline respiratory disease complex,
- Pulmonary edema,
- Congestive heart failure, fluid accumulation all over the heart and lungs, as well as
- Lung or heart infection, like heartworms or bacterial infection.
Put simply, the acquired and congenital heart and lung conditions in cats are complicated and serious cases, which may only be treated and even diagnosed by licensed vet professional.
Symptoms
Cats that has heart disease might exhibit one or more of these symptoms related to the cardiovascular system:
- Failure of a kitten to grow,
- Weakness,
- Rapid, irregular, or slowed heartbeat,
- Fluid buildup or abdominal swelling, as well as
- Difficulty in breathing or coughing.
The symptoms of lung disease in cats may include the following:
- Loud breathing or breathing that comes with abnormal noises,
- Pain with breathing,
- Labored breathing,
- Rapid breathing,
- Mucosal or dry cough, as well as
- Blood, mucus, or pus discharge from the nose.
Some conditions, like congestive heart failure may affect both the heart and lungs. In this instance, the cat might show some symptoms of both, more especially a wet kind of cough, fluid buildup, as well as labored breathing in the abdominal area.
Prognosis

A vet may start a diagnostic process via a complete physical examination of the cat, supplemented by a review of the medical history and record. The vet may listen to the cat’s lungs and heart with stethoscope in order to discover whether irregular fluid accumulation or heartbeat is present. Imaging like electrocardiography, x-rays, and echocardiography may be used in diagnosing arrhythmias, discover any structural abnormalities, as well as the presence of heartworm.
Commonly, a physical exam and imaging is already enough in diagnosing heart and lung disease in cats. Nonetheless, for more complex cases or rarer conditions, additional exams like cardiac catheterization or even nuclear studies might be orders in providing a more thorough understanding of the heart and lungs of a cat.
Treatments for Heart and Lung Disease in Cats
Irrespective of the condition of the cat, a vet might be considered with the restoration of the normal lung and heart function, minimizing the damage to the lungs and heart, reinstating the normal heart rate and rhythm, or resolving a particular infection with the use of some anti-parasitic in case of heartworm presence, or antibiotics in case of bacterial infection.
In addition, the treatment course suggested by the vet may vary extensively depending on the final diagnosis of the cat. Furthermore, surgery is frequently necessary in repairing congenital abnormalities, which are identified early in the kitten’s life. For so many conditions, the kittens may recover fully after a surgery and live its normal life.
For some others, the diagnosis isn’t as heartening. In addition, the vet may present you with the choices of treatment options, which may fit the condition of the cat and may paint a more comprehensive picture of the health and outlook of the cat.