title: Do cats with a cranial cruciate ligament injury and osteoarthritis demonstrate a different gait pattern and behaviour compared to sound cats?
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Osteoarthritis (OA) is a common cause of chronic pain and dysfunction in older cats. The majority of cats with OA do not show signs of overt lameness, yet cats with orthopaedic disease are known to redistribute their body weight from the affected limb. OA can cause changes in the cat's behaviour, which is often misinterpreted as signs of aging. The aim of the present study was to investigate if cats with a previous cranial cruciate ligament (CCL) injury perform differently on the pressure mat and exhibit different behaviour compared to sound cats according to the owner´s subjective assessment. Ten cats with a previous CCL injury were assessed with a pressure mat system and their owners were asked to complete an assessment questionnaire. The results were compared to those of 15 sound cats, matched to have the same weight and body condition score.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The front/hind limb index for peak vertical force (PVF) was significantly higher for CCL cats, and there was a decreased PVF and vertical impulse (VI) on the affected hindlimb compared to the unaffected one. The results indicate that cats with a previous CCL injury put less weight, on the affected hindlimb but for a longer time. There was a significantly higher owner assessment questionnaire score for the group of cats with CCL injury compared to sound cats.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Cats with a previous CCL injury have a different gait pattern compared to sound cats and a different behaviour according to owner subjective assessment. It is of great importance that further studies are performed to investigate the long term effects of CCL injury as a cause of pain and physical dysfunction, and its role in the development of OA in cats. Improved assessment tools for chronic pain caused by OA in cats are needed, both to facilitate diagnosis and to evaluate pain-relieving treatment.
authors: Department of Clinical Sciences, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine and Animal Husbandry, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences, PO Box 234, S532 23, Skara, Sweden. sarah.stadig@slu.se.
authors: Sarah
authors: http://orcid.org/0000-0002-7259-2450
authors: S
authors: Stadig
authors: Comparative Pain Research, Department of Clinical Sciences, College of Veterinary Medicine, North Carolina State University, Raleigh, NC, 27606, USA.|Center for Pain Research and Innovation, School of Dentistry, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, NC, USA.
authors: B Duncan X
authors: BD
authors: Lascelles
authors: Department of Anatomy, Physiology and Biochemistry, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine and Animal Husbandry, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences, PO Box 7011, S750 07, Uppsala, Sweden.
authors: Anna
authors: A
authors: Bergh
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D000070598:Anterior Cruciate Ligament Injuries / Q000150:complications / Q000662:veterinary*; D001522:Behavior, Animal / Q000502:physiology*; D002371:Cat Diseases / Q000209:etiology* / Q000473:pathology; D002415:Cats; D005260:Female; D005684:Gait / Q000502:physiology*; D006801:Humans; D007794:Lameness, Animal / Q000209:etiology*; D008297:Male; D010003:Osteoarthritis / Q000150:complications / Q000662:veterinary*; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires
keywords: Cranial cruciate ligament; Feline; Owner assessment; Pain questionnaire; Pressure mat technique