title: Evaluation of clinical signs and causes of lower urinary tract disease in European cats.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To investigate the clinical signs and causes of lower urinary tract disease (LUTD) in 77 cats.
  
  
  METHODS
  Cats diagnosed with LUTD over a two-year period were included in the study.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The study population comprised 67 male and 10 female cats. Uroliths occurred in 17 of the 77 cats (22 per cent), urethral plugs in eight cats (10 per cent) and urinary tract infection in six cats (8 per cent). In 44 cats (57 per cent), no specific cause for the disease was found and they were classified as having idiopathic LUTD. In two of the 77 cats (3 per cent) no definitive diagnosis was established. Pain was less common in cats with uroliths and haematuria was more often seen in cats with urinary tract infection. At presentation, urethral obstruction was diagnosed in 45 of the 77 cats (58 per cent).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The causes of LUTD found in cats in this study are similar to those that have been previously documented, and idiopathic LUTD is the most frequent diagnosis. However, the rate of urethral obstruction, particularly in cats with idiopathic LUTD, was higher than in other reports. The cause of this difference is unknown.
authors.affiliation: Clinic for Small Animal Internal Medicine, Vetsuisse Faculty, University of Zurich, Switzerland.
authors.forename: B
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Gerber
authors.forename: F S
authors.initials: FS
authors.lastname: Boretti
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Kley
authors.forename: P
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Laluha
authors.forename: C
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Müller
authors.forename: N
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Sieber
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Unterer
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Wenger
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Flückiger
authors.forename: T
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Glaus
authors.forename: C E
authors.initials: CE
authors.lastname: Reusch
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D002371:Cat Diseases / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000209:etiology* / Q000473:pathology*; D002415:Cats; D005260:Female; D008297:Male; D011446:Prospective Studies; D013557:Switzerland / Q000453:epidemiology; D014524:Urethral Obstruction / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000209:etiology / Q000473:pathology / Q000662:veterinary*; D014552:Urinary Tract Infections / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000209:etiology / Q000473:pathology / Q000662:veterinary*; D014570:Urologic Diseases / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000209:etiology / Q000473:pathology / Q000662:veterinary*