August 2009
European Veterinarians and Feline Illnesses, it's all at the Lille Eurocongress
Like other cats of various breeds, the EUROPEAN CAT* is being seen and treated more and more frequently by veterinarians across Europe. The nature of our daily lifestyles has made cats very popular among companion animal lovers. As cats are generally more independent than dogs, they seem to correspond a bit better to the demands of modern civilisation.
The team that planned the programme for this year's Eurocongress definitely understands the challenge veterinarians are facing with regard to feline illnesses.
They felt it strongly necessary that practitioners be brought up to date in this field. Therefore, the committee chose speakers with major expertise in the area, who especially know how to efficiently transmit their knowledge.
At this Congress, nearly every major illness found in cats will be addressed in some way.
Four major State of the Art conferences are signature events at the Eurocongress ; these presentations will give attendees an in-depth look at various medical conditions. Fresh perspectives on urinary / endocrine system illnesses, hypertension, viral infections, and skin allergies will transform some of our old opinions about these afflictions.
Nearly all methods of treatment will also be discussed : biotherapy, acupuncture...even allopathy. In addition, several other problems that can get in the way of a proper diagnosis or hinder certain results will be presented. These will include setting, restraint, methods for distributing medication, negative side effects, respecting observation times...
The scientific programme for the Eurocongress was developed in such a way that all delegates will find a variety of conferences in the field that interests them most. Within each field, he or she will discover the most recent medical or surgical procedures for felines and will learn how to apply them, at the level desired.
A different kind of clinical exam
Often underestimated or misdiagnosed, each one of these feline illnesses (in all fields) has a great number of characteristics to discover.
Nowadays, many clinical exams take great amounts of patience, time, or even research. The veterinarian who is always in a hurry may feel overwhelmed by such a process.
Further exams reinforce the need to maintain one's patience in order to ensure success with a case. We must also recognize that it is simply not easy to properly care for a cat !
Countless specificities
One example : cardiology. When I was organizing the programme, it seemed logical to me to place the conference “Maladies cardiaques : comment les reconnaître” (“How to recognize cardiac illnesses”) in the “refresher” category. However, I realized that (despite its label), this first conference would present several “complications”: a frequent absence of signs of feline cardiopathy, difficult confirmation and diagnosis of such diseases ... Feline medicine is indeed full of these types of disorders, often with “misleading” characteristics.
We all know it : cats know how to hide symptoms of serious illness.
Taking this into account, we must repeat our observations and update our knowledge of cats in order to give them the care they need, allowing both the animal and the owner to lead a happier life !
The generation before us placed a great amount of emphasis on the fundamental differences between human medicine and canine medicine.
The veterinarians of our era, however, have brilliantly revealed a growing number of particularities in feline medicine.
Cats will lose a bit of their “mysterious side” in Lille. The answers we can bring to all medical questions about felines depend on the research and in-depth studies conducted by veterinarians and scientists. If we have quality solutions to these medical problems, not only will cat owners stay happy, but the veterinary teams will be happy too.
J.-F. Rousselot
President of the Scientific Committee