Michael H. Jaffe, DVM, MS, CCRP, DACVS, talked about the benefits of feline physical therapy and guidelines to keep in mind during his lecture at Fetch Kansas City.
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Physical therapy and rehabilitation tailored specifically for cats can make a significant difference in the wellbeing of these felines. Cats recovering from surgery, as well as those who have osteoarthritis, are overweight, or are healing from non-surgical injuries may see improved mobility, faster recovery, and an overall improved quality of life, according to Michael H. Jaffe, DVM, MS, CCRP, DACVS, an associate professor of small animal surgery at Mississippi State University College of Veterinary Medicine, who led a Fetch dvm360 Conference lecture on the topic this past weekend in Kansas City, Missouri.1
Other benefits of rehabilitation therapy include1:
“I always say that with surgery, we put the pieces together, but physical therapy and rehab gets the parts moving again. And I think there's a lot of truth to that,” said Jaffe during his presentation.1
Pet owners and practice owners who may not have specialized rehabilitation equipment can perform massage therapy on cats, explained Jaffe. This type of therapy promotes blood flow to the muscles, improves connective tissue strength and tendon elasticity, reduces some muscle spasms, and lowers stress and anxiety. According to Jaffe, massage therapy is also beneficial for breaking down adhesions.
“As far as lymphatic flow, that's important, because any edema that may form in the tissue, or certainly distal to the tissue, can be mobilized pretty quickly in terms of promoting that blood flow and improving the lymphatics to help drain some of that edema that's forming in the interstitial space,” he added.
In patients that have undergone surgery, Jaffe explained this therapy should be started within the first 24 to 48 hours after the procedure. Some patients may even receive massage therapy prior to undergoing more intensive rehabilitation protocols, noted Jaffe. Additionally, clients can be taught to perform massage therapy on their pets at home.
When it comes to the massage technique, Jaffe said he likes to isolate one joint at a time rather than doing a bicycle movement or the “accordion movement where you grab the foot and you pull the leg forward and back and forward and back.
“I really don't like to work on more than one joint at a time because with activities like the bicycle motion or the accordion motion, you are working all of the joints at one time, and not every joint is going to be capable of the same mobility as others,” Jaffe emphasized. “To try to prevent injuries, I really think it's best to work each individual joint by itself: hold the stretch for just a second or 2 and then...release it so that we don't injure the patient.”
As Jaffe explained, hot compresses cause vasodilation, promoting blood flow to tissues and increasing their metabolic rate. Heat therapy also increases the release of histamines, bradykinins, and prostaglandins, which may help lower inflammation in the tissue that is being warmed.
“This does also have the benefit of improving flexibility of fibrous tissue and so [for] joint capsule that may be a little bit contracted, it's going to loosen things up a little bit,” said Jaffe.
Patients with chronic diseases, such as osteoarthritis or back pain will benefit from this form of therapy. According to Jaffe, heat therapy also improves lymphatic flow and can help decrease swelling and edema in tissue. Jaffe suggests doing a warm compress beginning at approximately 24 or 48 to 72 hours after a surgical procedure.
“Initially, we're going to use our cold compresses to try to reduce some of the pain and inflammation at the surgery site following surgery. We'll certainly do cold compresses on our incision, but [for] the muscles that we've manipulated and have moved around and that have developed injuries, we're going to want to do warm compresses on those to try to improve that blood flow and promote healing,” explained Jaffe.
“I often use [heat therapy] as part of our warm up prior to any massage or passive range of motion or other exercises,” said Jaffe. “I like to use it to help decrease some of the muscle tightness prior to when we do our stretches and help decrease any muscle spasms as we work our muscles and take them through range of motion.”
Jaffe warns against using heat therapy for tumors because the blood flow to the tissue could promote metastasis. Other contraindications include open wounds, patients with severe cardiac insufficiency, and acute inflammation—for which cold compresses should be used in the first 48 to 72 hours post surgery. Additionally, veterinary professionals and pet parents at home should be careful when using hot compresses in areas with decreased or absent sensation, as well as with making sure the temperature is not too hot that it can burn the pet.
Unlike heat therapy, cold therapy causes vasoconstriction, decreasing edema formation and helping to lower inflammation and hematomas that may form from an acute injury, said Jaffe.
“A lot of times when we're putting a pet through a fairly vigorous workout with our rehab protocols, we're going to ice them down afterwards,” explained Jaffe. “We're going to use our cold compresses to decrease any pain or muscle spasms or muscle injury that may have occurred during our rehab session.”
Ice packs can be used for cold therapy, but caution should be taken not to put the packs directly on the cat’s skin. Instead, the ice packs should be wrapped in a towel to prevent cold shock or injury to the patient’s skin. Each session, Jaffe explained, should last no longer than 10 to 15 minutes. However, sessions can be repeated approximately every 4 hours as needed.
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