Vomiting in Cats

Vomiting in Cats

By: Dr. Debra Primovic

Section: Causes

Causes of acute vomiting may include:

Gastrointestinal (GI) disorders

  • Bacterial infection of the GI tract
  • Diet-related causes (diet change, food intolerance, food allergy, dietary indiscretion)
  • Foreign bodies (toys, string, plastic, hairballs)
  • Intestinal intussusception (prolapse of one part of the intestine into another)
  • Intestinal volvulus (torsion of a loop of intestine, causing obstruction with or without compromising the blood supply to the part by strangulation)
  • Intestinal parasites

    Non-gastrointestinal disorders

  • Acute kidney failure
  • Acute liver failure or gall bladder inflammation
  • Diabetes mellitus
  • Drugs (certain drugs can cause vomiting including digoxin, cyclophosphamide, cisplatin, adriamycin, erythromycin and tetracycline)
  • Hypercalcemia (excess calcium in the
    blood)
  • Motion sickness
  • Neurological disorders (such as vestibular disease, meningitis, increased intracranial pressure or other central nervous system disorders)
  • Overeating
  • Pancreatitis
  • Peritonitis (inflammation of the membrane lining the walls of the abdominal and pelvic cavities)
  • Post-operative nausea
  • Pyometra (an accumulation of pus in the uterus)
  • Sepsis/systemic infection
  • Toxins or chemicals
  • Viral infections

    Causes of chronic vomiting may include:

    Gastrointestinal disorders

  • Chronic colitis
  • Chronic gastritis (lymphocytic plasma, eosinophilic, granulomatous)
  • Diaphragmatic hernia
  • Diet related (food allergy or intolerance)
  • Foreign bodies
  • Gastric motility disorders
  • Gastric outflow obstruction (due to a variety of causes)
  • Gastrointestinal ulceration
  • Hiatal hernia (protrusion of a structure, often a portion of the stomach, through the esophageal hiatus of the diaphragm)
  • Hypertrophic gastropathy
  • Intestinal obstruction
  • Neoplasia (the formation of a tumor)
  • Parasites
  • Severe constipation

    Non-gastrointestinal disorders

  • Chronic pancreatitis
  • Heartworm infection
  • Liver failure
  • Neurological disorders (neoplasia, inflammatory diseases, etc)
  • Kidney failure
  • Toxicity (such as lead)

     
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      Acute pancreatitis results from sudden inflammation of the pancreas and is characterized by activation of pancreatic enzymes that can cause the pancreas to begin digesting itself. The cause of acute pancreatitis...

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