title: Pansteatitis and severe hypocalcaemia in a cat.
abstract: A 13-year-old Siamese cat was presented for investigation of lethargy and progressive abdominal enlargement. Serum chemistry revealed severe reduction of total and ionised serum calcium. The omentum appeared hyperechoic with scattered hypoechoic foci on abdominal ultrasound examination. Elevated serum parathormone and low fractional excretion of calcium excluded a parathyroid disorder and renal loss of the electrolyte. During laparotomy the omentum appeared opaque, white and firm. Post-mortem examination revealed that the thoracic and subcutaneous fat was also affected. Histopathology confirmed the diagnosis of pansteatitis with diffuse calcium soaps formation. While, severe hypocalcaemia is occasionally seen in cats, the association with pansteatitis has not been reported previously. In man, a cause-and-effect relationship between calcium soaps and hypocalcaemia is recognised, though the association is rare.
authors.affiliation: Clinic for Small Animal Internal Medicine, Vetsuisse Faculty, University of Zürich, Winterthurerstr 260, 8057 Zürich, Switzerland. ezini@vetclinics.unizh.ch
authors.forename: Eric
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Zini
authors.forename: Beat
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Hauser
authors.forename: Pete
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Ossent
authors.forename: Renate
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Dennler
authors.forename: Tony M
authors.initials: TM
authors.lastname: Glaus
mesh_terms: D000273:Adipose Tissue / Q000473:pathology; D000818:Animals; D001344:Autopsy / Q000662:veterinary; D002371:Cat Diseases / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000473:pathology; D002415:Cats; D017809:Fatal Outcome; D005260:Female; D006996:Hypocalcemia / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000662:veterinary*; D013231:Steatitis / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000473:pathology