OPTIMAL NUTRITION FOR FELINE CARDIAC PATIENTS

摘要

Cardiac disease is one of the most common medical problems in cats, and can be one of the most challenging to treat. Optimal treatment of the cat with cardiac disease requires balancing multiple medications in order to achieve beneficial effects whileminimizing side effects, modifying diet, and educating the owner in order to achieve and maintain good quality of life. Many scientific advances have improved our knowledge of cardiac disease and congestive heart failure (CHF). It is becoming increasingly apparent that we not only need to treat the symptoms of CHF (eg, fluid accumulation, arrhythmias), but also need to treat the underlying neurohumoral mechanisms to achieve optimal management of CHF patients. In addition to newer cardiac medications, recent advances have improved our understanding of nutritional interventions and nutritional pharmacology. Addressing both medical and nutritional therapy is critical for the optimal management of these patients.