hypertropic cardiomyopathy

[ILUVCATS4EVER]

Hello,
I have a 12 year old male himilayan that was diagnosed with hcm in February of 07.  He is on enalapril every day.  The vet is suggesting I have a follow up ultrasound done on his heart.  I have absolutely no problem spending the money, but will this test show them anything that may cure him.  Are there better treatments than the enalapril?  I am so afraid of what they may find.
They also thing he is beginning to have hyperthyroidism.
Thank you for any advice.

[zodiacqueen]

Hi, enalapril is a good drug for cats, mine has been on it for yrs now!  It drops the blood pressure that the heart doesn't have to work as hard.  With cardiomyopathy, that is a good effect to have!  There are several different kinds of cariomyopathy, but the one thing they all have in common is that they weaken the heart muscle.  I have researched a couple of the types, and I remember seeing that the hypertrophic type means that there is excessive muscle tissue in the heart.  That impairs the heart beat and causes the heart muscle to stiffen.  Cardiomyopathy is the SAME thing in humans.  One treatment for the hypertrophic type that I read for humans involved cutting away the excessive muscle-"thinning it out".  Now, that is done for people, so I'm guessing that this would be experimental in cats.  And, as Mrs. Savas said, your best bet is a large animal hospital.  I sure wish you had posted where you live because I know of 2 on the east coast-one in New York City, and the other is in North Carolina.  These animal hospitals are huge and would be more willing to experiment!

I hope that you also consider treating the hyperthyroid condition in your cat, because that condition puts a lot of strain on the heart and makes the heart rate increase big time.  Once, that is under control the cardiomyopathy will probably improve.  Maybe not cure it, but most definitely improve his heart!

Best wishes, and please keep us updated!

[Mrs_Savas]

He's a lovely boy, thanks for sharing the picture!

I assume we are talking about an external ultrasound (an internal ultrasound is much more invasive and risky)?  In my experience, yes, an ultrasound can be a very useful diagnostic tool dealing with cardiac conditions.

As for hyperthyroidism, it's a very common endocrine condition in cats.  If it is very serious they will often remove it surgically.  More often a drug therapy is prescribed.  Methamazole is a commonly used drug for this condition and, as far as I know, has good results and mild, if any, side effect.  Downside is that you have to give your cat a pill every day (although there are ways to make this easier).  Also, there are natural supplements and dietary regimens that can help a lot.  My husband (Savas) knows a lot about that sort of thing - I'll ask him to post another response to you with some nutitional information.

As far as enalapril, I'm sorry, I don't know.  But I will say that if you don't trust your vet completely, you should consider a second opinion.  Have you considered taking him to a veterinary hospital?  I recommend them in most serious cases because they have large staffs that have seen pretty much everything, as opposed to most vet's offices that are small and only have one or two vets working there.

I know how you feel about being scared of what you might hear.  Hang in there, and let us know if there is anything we can do to help.

Good luck!  Keep us posted, ok?

Also, we'd love to have that picture in our slideshow, if you'd like to upload it.  Take a look at the slideshow (on the right side of the page) and if you feel like including your baby, let me know.