Improving treatment of chronic pain in cats

Winn grant W12-027
Development of outcome assessment instruments for chronic pain in cats
Investigator: Dorothy Cimino Brown; University of Pennsylvania

Cats are unique. They cannot benefit from the same pain fighting medications used in dogs, because they can cause serious side-effects in cats. It is crucially important that we identify pain fighting medications that are safe and effective in cats, so that we can relieve them from pain caused by such conditions as arthritis or cancer. Once a treatment option for pain is identified that might be useful in cats, studies must be carefully designed in order to prove that the potential new treatment option is effective. The greatest obstacle to designing such studies is the fact that we have not developed reliable ways to measure pain in cats. If we can not measure the pain, we can not prove that we are appropriately treating it. 

The goal of this study is to develop tools that can measure pain in cats and therefore appropriately design studies that will identify new treatments. The first tool is the Feline Brief Pain Inventory, which will be an owner completed questionnaire that will allow them to identify and report on how their cat behaves at home, focusing on the behaviors that are related to pain. The second tool is an activity monitor that can be worn on the cat’s collar while it progresses through its normal activities at home. We plan to identify how many days the monitor needs to be worn to collect data reliably. Ultimately the monitor might identify the improved activity that can be related to adequate pain control.

This project is available for sponsorship. When you sponsor a project, your name will be added to the list of the project's supporters on our website and in any publications we produce about the project. You will receive exclusive pre-publication reports on the progress of your chosen project as they become available, and a final report at its conclusion.

More on cat health:
Winn Feline Foundation Library
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Winn grant W12-027
Development of outcome assessment instruments for chronic pain in cats
Investigator: Dorothy Cimino Brown; University of Pennsylvania

Cats are unique. They cannot benefit from the same pain fighting medications used in dogs, because they can cause serious side-effects in cats. It is crucially important that we identify pain fighting medications that are safe and effective in cats, so that we can relieve them from pain caused by such conditions as arthritis or cancer. Once a treatment option for pain is identified that might be useful in cats, studies must be carefully designed in order to prove that the potential new treatment option is effective. The greatest obstacle to designing such studies is the fact that we have not developed reliable ways to measure pain in cats. If we can not measure the pain, we can not prove that we are appropriately treating it. 

The goal of this study is to develop tools that can measure pain in cats and therefore appropriately design studies that will identify new treatments. The first tool is the Feline Brief Pain Inventory, which will be an owner completed questionnaire that will allow them to identify and report on how their cat behaves at home, focusing on the behaviors that are related to pain. The second tool is an activity monitor that can be worn on the cat’s collar while it progresses through its normal activities at home. We plan to identify how many days the monitor needs to be worn to collect data reliably. Ultimately the monitor might identify the improved activity that can be related to adequate pain control.

This project is available for sponsorship. When you sponsor a project, your name will be added to the list of the project's supporters on our website and in any publications we produce about the project. You will receive exclusive pre-publication reports on the progress of your chosen project as they become available, and a final report at its conclusion.

More on cat health:
Winn Feline Foundation Library
Find us on Facebook
Follow us on Twitter
Read the Cat Health News Weekly
Join us on Google+

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Feline lymphoma & body weight status

Krick EL, Moore RH, Cohen RB and Sorenmo KU. Prognostic significance of weight changes during treatment of feline lymphoma. J Feline Med Surg. 2011; 13: 976-83.

Ultrasound image of kidney lymphoma in a cat

The most common hematopoietic cancer diagnosed in cats is lymphoma. While several prognostic factors have been documented, another prognostic factor recently evaluated is weight loss. Body weight may be a simple, objective, and practical marker of patient status over time. It is common in clinical practice to use body weight as an assessment of both response to and tolerance of therapy. This study looked at the prognostic significance of weight changes during treatment of cats with lymphoma. Another purpose was to compare weight changes according to baseline body weight, lymphoma cell type (large versus small cell), and tumor location.

The records of 209 cats treated for lymphoma with chemotherapy from 1995 to 2007 were evaluated. Cats with large cell lymphoma had a significantly shorter survival time if they had lost ≥ 5% of their weight at 1 month of treatment than those that had gained weight or had a stable weight. Weight loss and other clinical signs experienced by cats undergoing lymphoma treatment may be a result of the disease itself as well as chemotherapy side effects and it may be challenging to tell the difference. The first 2 months of treatment may be the best time to begin therapeutic interventions and nutritional support in addition to chemotherapy to decrease weight loss. [VT]

Related articles: Taylor SS, Goodfellow MR, Browne WJ, et al. Feline extranodal lymphoma: response to chemotherapy and survival in 110 cats. J Small Anim Pract. 2009; 50: 584-92.

More on cat health:
Winn Feline Foundation Library
Find us on Facebook
Follow us on Twitter
Read the Cat Health News Weekly
Join us on Google+

Krick EL, Moore RH, Cohen RB and Sorenmo KU. Prognostic significance of weight changes during treatment of feline lymphoma. J Feline Med Surg. 2011; 13: 976-83.

Ultrasound image of kidney lymphoma in a cat

The most common hematopoietic cancer diagnosed in cats is lymphoma. While several prognostic factors have been documented, another prognostic factor recently evaluated is weight loss. Body weight may be a simple, objective, and practical marker of patient status over time. It is common in clinical practice to use body weight as an assessment of both response to and tolerance of therapy. This study looked at the prognostic significance of weight changes during treatment of cats with lymphoma. Another purpose was to compare weight changes according to baseline body weight, lymphoma cell type (large versus small cell), and tumor location.

The records of 209 cats treated for lymphoma with chemotherapy from 1995 to 2007 were evaluated. Cats with large cell lymphoma had a significantly shorter survival time if they had lost ≥ 5% of their weight at 1 month of treatment than those that had gained weight or had a stable weight. Weight loss and other clinical signs experienced by cats undergoing lymphoma treatment may be a result of the disease itself as well as chemotherapy side effects and it may be challenging to tell the difference. The first 2 months of treatment may be the best time to begin therapeutic interventions and nutritional support in addition to chemotherapy to decrease weight loss. [VT]

Related articles: Taylor SS, Goodfellow MR, Browne WJ, et al. Feline extranodal lymphoma: response to chemotherapy and survival in 110 cats. J Small Anim Pract. 2009; 50: 584-92.

More on cat health:
Winn Feline Foundation Library
Find us on Facebook
Follow us on Twitter
Read the Cat Health News Weekly
Join us on Google+

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Scoliosis & Nutrition - Case Study from a researcher and sufferer!

Today I received an email from a scoliosis researcher and sufferer... I know nutrition is an important factor in scoliosis development and am happy to find another person who also sees the value in it. Looking forward to furthering research in this field and happy to have found a colleague committed to the same cause... its time to rethink scoliosis and start researching the cause rather than merely researching better surgical or bracing techniques! Stop masking symptoms and start treating the cause. Below is the email:

Dear Dr. Lau,

I am a scoliosis patient and I have also spent several years assisting with scoliosis research in Canada. Some of the projects I assisted in involved melatonin and scoliosis in chickens. I came across your book and website today, and I am very interested in your theories on nutrition.

I believe nutrition has played a very large role in the progression of my scoliosis. I have had 7 scoliosis surgeries, 6 of which I had when I was a teenager, and one again a few years ago, approximately 9 years later. Every time I needed surgery it was due to a failed fusion. I wore a boston brace for three years prior to my first surgery. I was also a rhythmic gymnast at the time and was very flexible and thin. I had a 98 degree curve before my first surgery. I had some complications from the most recent surgery, and I had to have my shoulder blade fused to my ribs. This fusion consequently failed twice as well. I have had lots of time in the past few years to think about my scoliosis, and during this time I also began to really pay attention to my body. I noticed things that I didn't think were normal. I looked up what I had noticed and found that they were likely from vitamin and nutrient deficiencies. I asked my doctor to test some of my vitamin levels, and I found out that I had a severe vitamin D and phosphorus deficiency. Since I have been taking vitamin D, I have not had any more problems in over a year. I have spent several hours looking up journal articles, and I have come up with several of the same factors that you mentioned in your book that I think are important, including zinc, copper, magnesium, vitamin d, calcium, and low estrogen. I was very excited to find someone who had found the same things as I had! I recently found a record of my weight as a baby, and realized that I was very underweight, at only 22 pounds at age 2.5 years. My Mother said I was a sick baby, and didn't like to eat. When I got older I also never ate much, and I especially never like to eat meat (as I understand this is a sign of a zinc deficiency). Scoliosis does run in our family, but I believe this poor diet as a child set me up for a much worse curvature than anyone else in my family has experienced.

About Dr Kevin Lau

Dr Kevin Lau DC is the founder of Health In Your Hands, a series of tools for Scoliosis prevention and treatment. The set includes his book Your Plan for Natural Scoliosis Prevention and Treatment, a companion Scoliosis Exercises for Prevention and Correction DVD and the innovative new iPhone application ScolioTrack. Dr Kevin Lau is a graduate in Doctor of Chiropractic from RMIT University in Melbourne Australia and Masters in Holistic Nutrition. He is a member of International Society On Scoliosis Orthopaedic and Rehabilitation Treatment (SOSORT), the leading international society on conservative treatment of spinal deformities. In 2006 I was awarded the "Best Health-care Provider Awards" by the largest Newspaper publication in Singapore on October 18 2006 as well as being interviewed on Primetime Channel News Asia as well as other TV and Radio. For more information on Dr Kevin Lau, watch his interviews or get a free sneak peek of his book, go to: http://www.hiyh.info.

Today I received an email from a scoliosis researcher and sufferer... I know nutrition is an important factor in scoliosis development and am happy to find another person who also sees the value in it. Looking forward to furthering research in this field and happy to have found a colleague committed to the same cause... its time to rethink scoliosis and start researching the cause rather than merely researching better surgical or bracing techniques! Stop masking symptoms and start treating the cause. Below is the email:

Dear Dr. Lau,

I am a scoliosis patient and I have also spent several years assisting with scoliosis research in Canada. Some of the projects I assisted in involved melatonin and scoliosis in chickens. I came across your book and website today, and I am very interested in your theories on nutrition.

I believe nutrition has played a very large role in the progression of my scoliosis. I have had 7 scoliosis surgeries, 6 of which I had when I was a teenager, and one again a few years ago, approximately 9 years later. Every time I needed surgery it was due to a failed fusion. I wore a boston brace for three years prior to my first surgery. I was also a rhythmic gymnast at the time and was very flexible and thin. I had a 98 degree curve before my first surgery. I had some complications from the most recent surgery, and I had to have my shoulder blade fused to my ribs. This fusion consequently failed twice as well. I have had lots of time in the past few years to think about my scoliosis, and during this time I also began to really pay attention to my body. I noticed things that I didn't think were normal. I looked up what I had noticed and found that they were likely from vitamin and nutrient deficiencies. I asked my doctor to test some of my vitamin levels, and I found out that I had a severe vitamin D and phosphorus deficiency. Since I have been taking vitamin D, I have not had any more problems in over a year. I have spent several hours looking up journal articles, and I have come up with several of the same factors that you mentioned in your book that I think are important, including zinc, copper, magnesium, vitamin d, calcium, and low estrogen. I was very excited to find someone who had found the same things as I had! I recently found a record of my weight as a baby, and realized that I was very underweight, at only 22 pounds at age 2.5 years. My Mother said I was a sick baby, and didn't like to eat. When I got older I also never ate much, and I especially never like to eat meat (as I understand this is a sign of a zinc deficiency). Scoliosis does run in our family, but I believe this poor diet as a child set me up for a much worse curvature than anyone else in my family has experienced.

About Dr Kevin Lau

Dr Kevin Lau DC is the founder of Health In Your Hands, a series of tools for Scoliosis prevention and treatment. The set includes his book Your Plan for Natural Scoliosis Prevention and Treatment, a companion Scoliosis Exercises for Prevention and Correction DVD and the innovative new iPhone application ScolioTrack. Dr Kevin Lau is a graduate in Doctor of Chiropractic from RMIT University in Melbourne Australia and Masters in Holistic Nutrition. He is a member of International Society On Scoliosis Orthopaedic and Rehabilitation Treatment (SOSORT), the leading international society on conservative treatment of spinal deformities. In 2006 I was awarded the "Best Health-care Provider Awards" by the largest Newspaper publication in Singapore on October 18 2006 as well as being interviewed on Primetime Channel News Asia as well as other TV and Radio. For more information on Dr Kevin Lau, watch his interviews or get a free sneak peek of his book, go to: http://www.hiyh.info.

Read More