Forwarded message - for info, please visit
http://www.marvistavet.com/html/cerebellar_hypoplasia.html
Note: Please consult a veterinarian for all medical issues

Cerebellar Hypoplasia in cats - caused by feline distemper virus

The cat with cerebellar hypoplasia is abnormal from birth, though it
may not be clear that something is wrong until the kittens are toddling
around with some coordination. The cat with this disease clearly has
balance issues: he walks with his legs widely placed for fear of falling
and places his feet clumsily. He often leans against walls for support.
Sitting still, he may look like a fairly normal cat but once focused on a
toy, food bowl or friendly hand, tremors begin getting more wobbly as
concentration becomes more intense. Still, despite the obvious
impairment, cats with this condition are happy, able to feed themselves
and use a litter box, and are felt to have good life quality.

The cerebellum is part of the central nervous system though not exactly
part of the brain. It is nestled inside your skull at the base of the brain as
shown in this picture. The cerebellum is involved in the involuntary aspects
of moving our bodies, whether we are walking around, reaching for
something, or just turning our heads. These all seem like voluntary
activities so it might be difficult to consider that there is something
involuntary going on as well.

Still, consider walking across an uneven perhaps rocky terrain while
carrying on a conversation with another person.

Certainly the decision to move from point A to point B is voluntary but
the chances are you can walk across pretty uneven terrain without falling
down or even thinking about where to put your feet. You can thank
your cerebellum for that.

Your cerebellum receives information from your feet as well as from
the vestibular apparatus in your middle ear. This information tells you
where up and down are and where your body is in relation to up and
down. Your cerebellum integrates all this information so that you can
not only walk or run across uneven terrain without devoting any
conscious thought to how to do so, you can turn your head, maybe
even drink from a bottle of water, and look at another person while
you are walking without (much) chance of falling down.

YOUR CAT’S CEREBELLUM AND THE FELINE DISTEMPER VIRUS

The cerebellum is obviously a complex piece of equipment. During
development before birth, the cerebellum is maturing up until the
last few days before birth. This leaves the cerebellum vulnerable to
an assortment of toxins. In the case of cerebellar hypoplasia the
culprit is the feline distemper virus. Growing nerves in the cerebellum
are destroyed creating a tiny cerebellum and a disability in the kitten.
The mother cat need not be actually infected during pregnancy to
create this syndrome; she can simply be vaccinated with a modified
live distemper vaccine, the most basic of all cat vaccines.

Kittens infected with distemper under age 2 weeks may also experience
enough cerebellar damage to suffer cerebellar hypoplasia.

This means that mother cats due for vaccines should not be vaccinated
during pregnancy nor in the first 2 weeks following kitten delivery.

DIAGNOSIS

While special imaging such as CT scanning or MRI can be used to confirm
the underdeveloped tiny cerebellum, the diagnosis of this condition is
usually obvious because of the following features:

The condition is non-progessive (it doesn’t get worse).

The cat is not weak, just not coordinated.

“Intention tremors” are evident when the cat is focused but the cat
looks largely normal if still.

Walking is incoordinated with a wide stance, often using the wall for
support.

The internet is rife with video shot by owners of “CH” cats. Here is a
video of kittens showing the typical clinical signs (click on the “play”
arrow to play video):
http://tinyurl.com/lprdn7

TREATMENT

No treatment can resolve the damage in a kitten with cerebellar
hypoplasia. Some kittens are more severely affected than others.
Owning a cat with cerebellar hypoplasia emphasizes managing the
condition. The cat should be indoors only and non-spill food dishes
should be obtained. Most cats have good life quality and make up in
personality what they lack in motor skills.
http://tinyurl.com/m8nfuz

Some on-line communities have sprung up for owners of cats with
cerebellar hypoplasia. Here are two areas that might be of interest.
http://community.livejournal.com/ch_kitties/
www.chkittyclub.com/pages/home.html

PREVENTION

This syndrome is easily prevented by vaccinating female cats for
feline distemper when they are not pregnant. This means that regular
vaccination will prevent cerebellar hypoplasia in kittens. If a cat is
pregnant, vaccination should be withheld during pregnancy and for
a good 2-3 weeks after the kittens are born.

Posted on SHARE Yahoo Group - May 28, 2009