Bennett David, Zainal Ariffin Siti Mariam bt, Johnston Pamela
School of Veterinary Medicine, University of Glasgow, Bearsden, Glasgow G61 1QH, UK.
J Feline Med Surg. 2012 Jan;14(1):65-75. doi: 10.1177/1098612X11432828.
Osteoarthritis (OA) is very common, particularly in older cats, but its clinical significance has largely gone unrecognised until recently. As in other species, OA is often painful and appropriate treatment is required to improve the animal's quality of life. Most cases appear to be primary or idiopathic. It is important for the clinician to actively seek these cases in the practice population.
The recognition of chronic arthritic pain is a major challenge since most cats will not exhibit lameness. The main features of feline OA are changes in behaviour and lifestyle, which develop gradually and which owners tend to interpret as simply being the effects of old age. A meaningful physical orthopaedic examination can be difficult to achieve. A lack of familiarity with feline joint radiographs, and the fact that major cartilage pathology can be present in the absence of any bony change, mean that radiographic identification of OA in the cat can also be problematic. CLIENT QUESTIONNAIRE: The recognition of chronic arthritic pain in the cat is based on owner questionnaires designed to elicit information about changes in mobility, activity levels, grooming habits and general demeanour.
Several publications now report on the significance of behavioural and lifestyle changes as indicators of chronic arthritic pain in the cat. However, there is not as yet a fully validated owner-based questionnaire for recognising chronic pain in the cat. Furthermore, the aetiopathogenesis of feline OA still requires detailed investigation. Such studies are likely to make a major contribution to comparative rheumatology, since feline OA, more so than the canine disease, shows many similarities with human OA.
骨关节炎（OA）非常常见，尤其在老年猫中，但直到最近其临床意义在很大程度上仍未得到认识。与其他物种一样，OA通常会引起疼痛，需要进行适当治疗以提高动物的生活质量。大多数病例似乎是原发性或特发性的。临床医生在实际病例中积极寻找这些病例很重要。
识别慢性关节炎疼痛是一项重大挑战，因为大多数猫不会表现出跛行。猫OA的主要特征是行为和生活方式的改变，这些改变是逐渐发展的，而主人往往将其简单地解释为衰老的影响。可能难以进行有意义的物理骨科检查。对猫关节X光片缺乏了解，以及在没有任何骨质变化的情况下可能存在主要软骨病变这一事实，意味着在猫中通过X光片识别OA也可能存在问题。客户问卷：对猫慢性关节炎疼痛的识别基于旨在获取有关活动能力、活动水平、梳理习惯和一般行为变化信息的主人问卷。
现在有几篇出版物报道了行为和生活方式改变作为猫慢性关节炎疼痛指标的意义。然而，目前还没有一个经过充分验证的基于主人的问卷来识别猫的慢性疼痛。此外，猫OA的病因发病机制仍需要详细研究。这类研究可能会对比较风湿病学做出重大贡献，因为与犬类疾病相比，猫OA与人类OA有更多相似之处。
