Cats, however, remain very similar to humans with this
type of injury. Whilst I have yet to document that one of
my feline patients returned from a ski-ing holiday in crutches
the sudden onset painful knee associated with an athletic
event is typical.
Identifying which particular episode resulted in the injury
is always problematic since most feline patients have been
"out for the day" when the accident occurred.
One can only guess that whilst attempting to leap over an
obstacle the affected leg became trapped in some way. The
weight of the patient then twists with the affected limb
remaining stationary resulting in a torn ligament.
Given the severity of damage to all the ligaments in "Clover's"
left knee I can only surmise that she was attempting a mighty
leap when her leg became trapped. Fortunately, our ability
to reconstruct damaged joints appears to have improved over
the years.
Using a nylon prosthesis and a metal crimp the stability
of the knee can be successfully restored. Not for the first
time have Clover's owners been glad of pet health insurance!
It shouldn't be too long now before "Clover" is
leaping around on her daily outings although I have advised
her to give up any thoughts of playing football or ski-ing!
Terry
Dunne BVMS, Cert SAO, MRCVS
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