Feline Stomatitis: Causes and Treatment
📝 Summary
Feline stomatitis, also called chronic gingivostomatitis, is hard to cure and recurs, earning the name 'refractory stomatitis.' Affected cats lose appetite, have chewing difficulty, and drool. Here is a look at cat stomatitis.
1 Understanding and Treating Feline Stomatitis
1. Causes of feline stomatitis
The cause remains unknown. Abroad, immune-mediated stomatitis is suggested but unproven; no specific virus or bacteria has been identified. Finding the cause still depends on biomedical research.
2. Symptoms of feline stomatitis
1. The cat has difficulty eating, abnormal chewing, and food refusal. Severe cases show clear oral signs—red, swollen mucosa, especially at the molars and premolars, far more than at canines and incisors.
2. The cat may exhale foul odor, drool, and the fur around the mouth dries into black clumps from saliva; white foam appears at the corners of the mouth.
3. Severe cases develop vesicular stomatitis—sores of varying size, mucosal erosion or necrosis, and a hoarse voice.
3. Treatment of feline stomatitis
Main treatments are medication and tooth extraction. Medication uses chlorhexidine rinses with antibiotics and steroids, staged by severity. Full-mouth extraction works for most refractory cases; owners worry the cat cannot eat afterward, but it barely matters and improves quality of life. When home care is not feasible, extraction is the best choice.
Stomatitis is very painful, so treat it promptly and rely on the owner’s careful care, or it will not heal. If you have other questions, consult an online veterinarian.
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