When a pet falls ill, the last thing an owner may suspect is that multiple conditions are the culprit. However, the body’s reactionary cues often respond to one another, and when one disease is working in tandem with several others, a cat’s way of life can be severely impacted.
This is especially true for triaditis, a complex condition that occurs when multiple organs in the gastrointestinal system develop problems concurrently.
Dr. Sue Lim, an assistant professor at the Texas A&M College of Veterinary Medicine & Biomedical Sciences, describes the complex factors leading to triaditis in cats and how owners can best support their pets through this disease.
Triaditis is complex because it involves the simultaneous inflammation of the pancreas (pancreatitis), the liver (cholangitis), and/or the intestines (chronic enteropathy).
Whether a cat is experiencing inflammation of all three organs or only two, common symptoms include: dehydration, lethargy, loss of appetite, abdominal pain and diarrhea.
“Clinical signs are pretty vague and non-specific and will vary slightly between patients with specific components of triaditis,” Lim said.
Diagnosing triaditis begins by identifying which organs are being affected through a combination of tests including blood and urine test to rule out other disorders, fecal exams to rule out parasites, serum feline pancreatic lipase immunoreactivity (fPLI) and diagnostic imaging.
If results are still inconclusive, a veterinarian may recommend doing more invasive tests such as sampling the gallbladder to look for infection and conducting biopsies of the intestines, liver and pancreas.
Once triaditis is diagnosed, management typically includes controlling symptoms and preventing aggravation of other organs. Supportive therapy options include fluids, pain management, control of vomiting and nausea, managing complications and treating comorbidities.
Specific treatments for each affected organ may include diet trials, antibiotics, or immunosuppressive therapy.
Because triaditis is a health risk for every breed of cat, it is vital for owners to stay vigilant about their feline friend’s daily well-being. The sooner an organ’s inflammation is managed by a veterinarian, the sooner the pet can feel relief.