{"id":632084,"date":"2024-07-20T21:08:09","date_gmt":"2024-07-21T01:08:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.catster.com\/?p=632084"},"modified":"2024-09-05T09:37:50","modified_gmt":"2024-09-05T13:37:50","slug":"parkinsons-in-cats-wolff-parkinson-white-syndrome","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.catster.com\/ask-the-vet\/parkinsons-in-cats-wolff-parkinson-white-syndrome\/","title":{"rendered":"Parkinson’s in Cats (Wolff-Parkinson-White Syndrome): Our Vet Explains Prevention, Signs & Treatment"},"content":{"rendered":"
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\n <\/span>\n \nCats & Parkinson’s<\/a>
\nWolff-Parkinson-White Syndrome Overview<\/a>
\nGeneral Signs<\/a>
\nDiagnosis<\/a>
\nTreatment<\/a>
\nPrevention Tips<\/a>
\nFrequently Asked Questions<\/a>
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If you\u2019re familiar with Parkinson\u2019s disease in humans, you might have asked yourself if cats can get Parkinson\u2019s. There is a rare condition in cats with a similar name, but it is very different from the aforementioned neurological disease.<\/p>\n

Wolff-Parkinson-White Syndrome is a congenital heart defect and completely unrelated to human Parkinson\u2019s. Confusingly, it is sometimes referred to as Parkinson\u2019s in cats, which is very misleading.<\/p>\n

Let\u2019s take a closer look at Wolff-Parkinson-White Syndrome so that you\u2019ll be able to explain why it should not be called Parkinson\u2019s.<\/p>\n

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Can Cats Get Parkinson\u2019s?<\/h2>\n

Parkinson\u2019s disease is an incurable, progressive movement disorder of the nervous system in humans. It causes tremors, stiffness, and impaired balance. It does not affect cats.<\/p>\n

Cats showing clinical signs similar to those associated with Parkinson\u2019s Disease need to be assessed by a veterinarian, as there are a number of diseases and toxins that can produce neurological signs.<\/p>\n

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Image Credit: pinkfloyd yilmaz uslu, Shutterstock<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

What Is Wolff-Parkinson-White Syndrome?<\/h2>\n

Wolff-Parkinson-White Syndrome (WPW) is an abnormality of the electrical activity of the heart muscle that produces life-threatening arrhythmias. This particular type of ventricular pre-excitation (VPE) was first described in a 1930 human case series published by three clinicians named, unsurprisingly, Louis Wolff, Sir John Parkinson, and Dr. Paul Dudley White.<\/p>\n

The normal contraction of the heart muscle is driven by electrical activity, which is coordinated by the sinoatrial node and atrioventricular (AV) nodes to ensure that the smaller atria fill and empty before the larger ventricles contract.<\/p>\n

In patients with WPW, the electrical activity can bypass the AV node via an accessory pathway, causing abnormalities in the electrical impulses as they travel through the heart muscle. If the ventricle is stimulated to contract too early, it will lead to interrupted blood flow and abnormal blood pressure, which will lead to poor circulation, organ damage, and syncope (fainting).<\/p>\n

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What Are the Signs of WPW?<\/h2>\n

WPW is not a widely recognized condition in cats, so there is very little information about feline cases and treatment. A 2023 paper on the subject<\/a> was only able to identify 17 published cases, a group too small to be able to form any reliable patterns or predictions. However, 16 of the 17 cases were male, which corresponds to a higher incidence in human males. Five cats died as a result of their cardiac disease, but overall, lifespan was evidently not significantly impacted by WPW. In humans, only around 0.1 to 0.3% of the population is estimated to have WPW, with 40 to 65% of those having no clinical signs.<\/p>\n

The most common symptoms of WPW in humans are dizziness, shortness of breath, chest pain, palpitations, syncope, collapse, and death.<\/p>\n

In cats, lethargy was the most common clinical sign, with rapid breathing (tachypnea) and syncope seen in some cases. These clinical signs can be attributed to tachyarrhythmia (fast, irregular heartbeat), which is the most common feature of WPW.<\/p>\n

Sudden death is possible<\/a> but is rarely seen in human cases.<\/p>\n

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Image Credit: Sergey Nivens, Shutterstock<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

How Is WPW Diagnosed?<\/h2>\n

WPW is not a condition that will be diagnosed using just a stethoscope. An electrocardiogram (ECG or EKG), which is a non-invasive test to measure the electrical activity of the heart, will show pattern abnormalities that are consistent with ventricular pre-excitement, i.e., electrical activity traveling through the ventricle earlier than it should. Generally, an echocardiogram (cardiac ultrasound) will also be performed to check for anatomical changes or defects.<\/p>\n

It is likely that WPW is more common than we realize, but cases may go undiagnosed if they are asymptomatic or do not cause obvious arrhythmias.<\/p>\n

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How Is WPW Treated?<\/h2>\n
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Image Credit: Nestor Rizhniak, Shutterstock<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

In humans, the treatment of WPW depends on the presence and severity of clinical signs. In patients with mild or no clinical signs, monitoring is usually advised. Because cats cannot tell us if they experience chest pain or palpitations, treatment tends to be more proactive in feline cases.<\/p>\n

A number of different cardiac treatments have been used, depending on the way in which the disease has presented. They include:<\/p>\n

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