The degree of mucosal infiltrate reported may not be a true reflection of the severity of the disease process. History, Clinical Signs, and Physical Examination Historical background and clinical signs of IBD can be quite variable and often are vague. The most common clinical signs noted in chronic or refractory cases are vomiting, diarrhea, or both, but anorexia and weight loss may be the sole presenting complaints in some cases. Vomiting is the most common clinical sign on presentation. The character of the vomitus can be variable, and hematemesis is occasionally seen.
Weight loss is also a variable component of the disease.
If the mucosal infiltrate is predominantly gastric or duodenal, vomiting is the primary presenting clinical sign and stools may be normal. An IBD cat can have variable physical findings, depending on a number of factors including chronicity of the disease process and location of the disease in the bowel. The physical findings may be unremarkable in some cases, whereas other affected cats present with more severe changes, such as a thin to emaciated body condition, varying degrees of abdominal tenseness, palpably thickened intestinal loops, mesenteric lymphadenopathy, and various degrees of dehydration. It is very important for the veterinarian to do a complete organ system review during the physical examination, to rule out concurrent disease processes. It is important to screen for other disease processes that may be causing the clinical signs.