SAGE-Hindawi Access to Research Veterinary Medicine International Volume 2010, Article ID 147142, 5 pages doi:10.4061/2010/147142 Research Article Retrospective Study of Salinomycin Toxicosis in 66 Cats Akos Pakozdy, 1 Iris Challande-Kathman, 2 Marcus Doherr, 2 Sigitas Cizinauskas, 3, 4 Simon J. Wheeler, 5 Anna Oevermann, 2 and Andre Jaggy 2 1 Department for Companion Animals and Horses, Small Animal Clinic, University of Veterinary Medicine Vienna, 1210 Vienna, Veterinaerplatz 1, Austria 2 Division of Animal Neurology, Department of Clinical Veterinary Medicine, Vetsuisse Faculty, University of Bern, Bremgartenstrasse 109a, 3012 Bern, Switzerland 3 Small Animal Hospital AISTI, Vantaa, Finland 4 Department of Clinical Veterinary Sciences, University of Helsinki, Virtatie 9, 01600 Vantaa, Finland 5 Department of Clinical Sciences, College of Veterinary Medicine, North Carolina State University, 4700 Hillsborough Street, Raleigh, NC 27606, USA Correspondence should be addressed to Akos Pakozdy, akos.pakozdy@vetmeduni.ac.at Received 20 November 2009; Accepted 11 February 2010 Academic Editor: Ingo Nolte Copyright © 2010 Akos Pakozdy et al. This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited. We examined 66 cats with salinomycin intoxication. Salinomycin caused different LMN signs of varying degrees of severity in all cases. Changes in blood work were unspecific, with the most frequent being increased serum creatine kinase activity, leukocytosis, and increased liver enzymes. Pathological electrodiagnostic findings: fibrillation potentials and positive sharp waves were detected in 10 cases, motor nerve conductance velocity was mildly decreased in 8/12 cats, and sensory nerve conductance velocity and repetitive nerve stimulation were normal in all examined cases. In five cases the peripheral neuropathy was confirmed by pathohistology. Fluid therapy and supportive care were used as therapy and 52 cats recovered completely. The probability for complete remission was significantly different between mildly and severely affected cases. It seems that the severity of clinical signs and prognosis correlate well with the amount of toxin ingested. We conclude that early recognition and decontamination combined with supportive care results in complete recovery. 1. Introduction In spring 1996 there was an outbreak of salinomycin-related neurological dysfunction in cats in the Netherlands and Switzerland. Epidemiological information on the affected cats indicated that this outbreak was related to the feeding of two brands of dry food from one manufacturer and was caused by contamination of the food with the coccidiostatic drug salinomycin. The clinical signs ranged from mild para- paresis to severe tetraparesis with autonomic dysfunction. Salinomycin is a monovalent ionophore and is used as a coccidiostatic drug in poultry and as a growth promoter in chickens, pigs, and cattle. Ionophores can cause toxicosis in nontarget species, however, it has been reported in sheep [1], pigs [2], horses [3, 4], dogs [5], and cats [6]. Salino- mycin forms a lipid-soluble complex with cations and can cause loss of intracellular potassium, which results in ATP inhibition, cell energy depletion and consequently cell death [7]. The clinicopathological changes most often reported include RBC fragility, electrolyte disturbances, CK elevation, and myoglobinuria. Pathological changes are found in the myocardium, skeletal muscle, and peripheral nerves [8]. Although the toxicity of salinomycin is well known, there are no detailed studies on clinical, neurological, laboratory and electrophysiological findings in cats. The aim of this study was to describe retrospectively the historical, clinical, laboratory, and electrophysiological data as well as outcome in cats with salinomycin intoxication. 2. Material and Methods Sixty-six well-documented medical records of cats with clinical signs of polyneuropathy caused by the presence of salinomycin in two different brands of commercial cat