Ear hematomas are subcutaneous hemorrhages in the area of the auricle. In cats, they can be the result of injuries or vascular diseases; their size depends on the degree of damage and the severity of the pathological process. If the condition is severe, the animals are always examined at the clinic with a full examination. Timely treatment allows you to avoid severe complications such as hearing impairment and suppuration. Only by contacting a veterinarian can you make the right decision on therapy and carry it out as effectively as possible and in the shortest possible time.
If an ear hematoma is detected, blood pumping is required; in case of space-occupying formations, surgical opening is performed. Such procedures are performed only in a veterinary clinic under anesthesia. No traditional medicine will help here, and the improvements are explained only by pain relief and are temporary. With this approach, you may miss the chance to cure the cat by harming the animal.
1.General information
The appearance of blood where it is not intended by nature is in all cases a serious symptom and requires medical intervention. We are, of course, not talking about scratches, donation, regular menstruation in women and other obvious situations; An alarming sign is internal or external hemorrhages (bleeding, hemorrhages), or the admixture of blood in biological substances.
Blood should not flow from the external auditory canal under any circumstances.
Therefore, regardless of how the patient himself feels about this phenomenon (and the reaction in some cases can be completely inadequate, up to anosognosia, i.e. denial of the very fact of the presence of a disease or symptom), contact a doctor, at a minimum, for advice is strictly required.
A must read! Help with treatment and hospitalization!
Ixodid tick
Ixodid tick Sometimes an ixodid tick that has burrowed into an ear or another part of the body and sucked blood is mistaken for a lump.
Ticks are brought home by cats traveling through areas rich in bushes. Arthropods most often attack in early spring.
Ticks can carry the following infectious diseases:
- Borreliosis or Weill's disease - bacteria lead to refusal to eat, dermatitis, and heart problems. Lymph nodes enlarge. After 2 months, lameness develops.
- Hemobartonellosis: rickettsia, which are activated under the influence of stress and consumption of large amounts of raw river fish. Anemia develops - urine becomes thin, mucous membranes become pale.
If an arthropod is torn off, severe inflammation will develop
Therefore, a responsible owner of a roaming cat purchases a tick remover and carefully removes the parasite. You should work carefully: if you crush a tick, its contents will fall on your hands
Parasites transmit infectious diseases of cats, dogs and humans.
Unscrewing the pliers
Reliable protection - Spot-on drops that protect against ticks, fleas and worms. The parasite should be placed in a bottle and taken to the laboratory. If pathogens are detected, early treatment will avoid consequences.
2. Reasons
Bleeding from the ear is considered a relatively rare occurrence, although the possible causes are quite numerous and varied:
- traumatic brain and otoinjuries;
- acute purulent otitis media;
- perforation of the eardrum when cleaning the ears with an object not intended for this purpose;
- barotrauma (during scuba diving, a nearby explosion, a sharp rise in the plane to altitude, etc.);
- spontaneous opening of a purulent abscess in the ear canal;
- tumor processes, benign or malignant;
- polypous hyperplasia;
- foreign body with sharp edges;
- active fungal (most often candida) infections of the ear canal.
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What causes ear inflammation?
If a cat scratches its ears from time to time, this is not a reason for serious concern. To distinguish your pet’s normal life from illness, you need to pay attention to other signs:
- There may be discharge from the ears with an unpleasant odor;
- the ears smell bad;
- the cat scratches near its ears until it bleeds;
- the animal’s head is tilted towards the affected ear;
- the cat does not allow you to touch his ears;
- the pet's behavior changes.
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If these signs appear, the cat owner should act immediately.
3. Symptoms and diagnosis
The main symptom, in fact, is reflected in the title. The amount of blood, depending on the reasons, can vary - from one drop to a noticeable trickle.
Likewise, the color and composition of the discharge may vary - pure scarlet blood, bloody cloudy mucous fluid, pus streaked with blood, etc.
Only an otolaryngologist can establish the causes, assess the degree of danger and prescribe additional diagnostic procedures. In addition to standard otoscopy, radiography, CT or MRI, laboratory smear analysis, and consultations with specialized specialists may be required.
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The cat is bleeding
There are different situations when kittens, cats and cats start bleeding and here you need to know what happens and why in most cases. Such knowledge allows you to immediately decide on first aid, and also allows you to roughly understand how the treatment of the problem that has arisen will proceed.
It is clear that the article is purely informational, since treatment can be prescribed only after the cat has been examined by a veterinarian, since no one undertakes to make a diagnosis in absentia.
A cat has bleeding before birth, during pregnancy, from the uterus, during childbirth, cannot give birth, after birth, what to do and why this happens
A pregnant cat started bleeding before giving birth, which means there was a miscarriage. This is possible if the cat is still very young, has been injured, or has contracted an infectious disease. The cat's owner may not even notice that the cat has miscarried, since the cat licks and eats the remains of the fetus.
If the fetus is large or does not lie correctly in the womb, then the cat cannot give birth for a long time. You need to lubricate the cat’s vulva with soapy water and, wearing sterile gloves, use your finger to guide the kitten in the desired direction. If the birth is prolonged and the cat is exhausted, you need to urgently call a veterinarian. During childbirth there should be no blood, since the cat gnaws the umbilical cord itself, but if blood still flows, then you need to cut the umbilical cord with sterile scissors and tie it.
If a cat bleeds after giving birth, tissue has ruptured. For minor bleeding, it is enough to give the cat a hemostatic drug. If the blood flows for a long time and in large quantities, then surgery is needed. The cause of heavy bleeding may be an infection or perhaps a fetus remaining in the uterus. Urgent surgery and antibiotic treatment are needed.
With gastritis and a perforated ulcer, the cat may bleed
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4.Treatment
In any case, first aid consists of ensuring the free evacuation of blood and other discharge from the ear canal.
In other words, you cannot pack the ear with cotton, place the patient on his side with the bleeding ear facing up, etc. If there is a risk of infection, use gauze or a bandage, which is applied in several layers to the auricle and bandaged loosely. As a last resort (if medical assistance is obviously not provided soon), instillation of a 0.3% hydrogen peroxide solution into the ear canal is allowed.
It is strictly contraindicated to heat the ear or try to independently remove a foreign body, even if it is clearly visible. Both contraindications apply especially to parents and grandmothers of small children.
In any situation, the first priority is to transport the patient to a doctor as quickly as possible or (depending on the circumstances and general condition) to call an ambulance.
Further therapeutic or surgical strategy is determined by the identified cause of bleeding.
Opening of a hematoma of the auricle (1 ear)
An auricular hematoma (otohematoma) is a limited accumulation of blood and lymph between the skin and cartilage of the auricle.
Why does an ear hematoma occur?
Mechanical damage to the blood and lymphatic vessels of the ear, followed by the accumulation of fluid in the subcutaneous tissue of the outer ear and the formation of cavities in it. All types of animals are susceptible to this disease, however, it has been noted that animals with erect ears are more likely to suffer from this pathology. Apparently, this is due to the higher tone of the muscles that support the auricle and the vessels that feed them. An indirect cause is itching that occurs for any reason, most often due to parasites (insects, mites). An auricular hematoma occurs when a subcutaneous vein or artery of the auricle is damaged by bruises, scratching, bites or squeezing. More often, hematomas are found on the inner surface of the auricle, where they are formed as a result of injury to the anterior artery of the ear, located on the inner side of the cartilage of the auricle. Somewhat less frequently, hematomas occur on the outer side of the ear due to damage to the internal ear artery, located on the outer surface of the ear cartilage.
How does an ear hematoma develop?
1.
The animal actively scratches the outer ear, damaging the blood and lymphatic vessels.
Moreover, damage to the lymphatic vessels plays an important role, since restoration of their integrity has a number of differences from blood vessels. 2.
The pressure of lymph in a lymphatic vessel is lower than that of blood in a blood vessel, so the time it takes for lymph to flow out of the vessel is much longer.
As a result, the surrounding loose tissues have time to become saturated with liquid, and gradually peel off, forming large cavities. 3.
There are very few substances in lymph that cause it to clot.
The flow of lymph from the damaged vessel continues until the leaked lymph, having soaked the surrounding tissues, exerts physical pressure on the walls of the damaged vessel, causing its mechanical closure. 4.
If there is only lymph in the cavity, then the diagnosis is lymphoextravasate; if there is an admixture of blood, then it is hemo-lymphoextravasate. Diseases are differentiated by diagnostic puncture and determination of the color range of the punctate. Lymph is light yellow, straw color. Blood impurities give the lymph a light pink to red color, depending on the degree of damage to the blood vessels in the lesion.
How does an ear hematoma manifest?
A fresh hematoma is a hot, painful compaction in the thickness of the auricle, in which fluctuation (fluid movement) can be detected. On non-pigmented areas of the skin, redness with a bluish tint can be noted. On day 2-3, upon palpation, crepitus is noted, pain intensifies, and inflammation of the base of the auricle develops.
How to make a diagnosis?
The diagnosis is made by clinical signs. Anamnesis data are taken into account: ear injuries, suspicions of the presence of ecto- and endo-parasites of the external ear. A diagnostic puncture is performed.
What is the differential diagnosis?
Hematoma of the outer ear should be distinguished from: abscess, phlegmon, local allergic reaction, for example from an insect bite.
Treatment methods for auricular hematoma.
1.
Conservative method. It consists of applying a cold compress and a tight bandage, which is changed every other day. After 2 weeks, resorption of the hematoma can be observed. It is possible to continue further conservative treatment using UHF therapy.
ATTENTION!!! The method is effective only in fresh cases of detection of hematomas and with slight filling with lymph or blood.
2.
Injecting a solution of novocaine with an antibiotic and hydrocortisone into the hematoma cavity is not effective. In our practice, we usually encounter long-standing cases of auricular hematomas that require surgical intervention.
Operations are more often planned. At the SQ-lap clinic and the SQ-lap veterinary hospital, they are carried out after a preoperative clinical examination of the animal; it is necessary to maintain an 8-hour diet. Before the operation, the doctor and the owner draw up a document on informed consent for the operation, after all the risks of these activities are explained to the owner. It is very important that the owner brings a warm blanket to the operation; it will be needed to warm the animal after the operation, disposable absorbent diapers, and napkins.
REMEMBER! POSTOPERATIVE CARE IS COMPLEX! IT IS BEST TO PERFORM IN A HOSPITAL CONDITION!
Two parallel incisions of about 1-2 cm are made on the inner surface of the ear, the hematoma cavity is cleaned out, the cavity is drained and ointments containing an antibiotic are placed in its cavity, and general antibiotic therapy is possibly used. Owners should pay special attention to the fact that the edges of the wound heal before the lymphatic vessel closes, so they provide for constant drainage of wound contents and take measures to prevent scarring of the skin at the incision site.
ATTENTION!!! After surgery, it is necessary to protect the ears from scratching, treat the underlying disease and periodically visit a veterinarian for examination.
How to prevent the development of an ear hematoma?
Minimize cases of injury to the head of animals during maintenance, timely treat animals from ectoparasites, monitor the cleanliness of the ears, if necessary, clean them, if otodectosis is suspected, take an analysis from the ear for laboratory testing.
Why does my pet's ear leak?
Subcutaneous mite activity
An unpleasant odor and discharge from the ear canal often occurs when infected with certain small parasites. Unpleasant symptoms are observed only when the tick has embedded itself under the skin. Owners can notice something is wrong by the restless behavior of the cat, which constantly scratches the problem area, shakes its head and has pathological exudate flowing from its ear. You can cope with the problem in the early stages, when the cat does not yet have discharge, with antiparasitic drugs. If the case is advanced, then you cannot do without veterinary help.
Veterinarians note that if discharge in cats occurs due to a mite, then it is distinguished by a brownish tint, while a copious amount of wax comes out of the ear canal, and soon pus.
Manifestation of the inflammatory reaction
If your pet is hypothermic, a bacterial infection may develop, resulting in ear inflammation.
If your cat's ears smell and bleed periodically, these may be symptoms of otitis media. Inflammation occurs as a result of exposure to such factors:
- hypothermia, which is accompanied by a bacterial infection;
- bite of a small insect, in particular a tick;
- mechanical damage to the ears;
- allergic reaction;
- bathing and insufficient drying of the pet's ears.
It is difficult not to notice the inflammatory reaction in the area of a cat’s ears, since the pathological process is accompanied by the following signs:
- purulent discharge from the ears;
- restless state;
- lethargy;
- redness of the ears.
Careless swimming
When using water treatments, special care must be taken to ensure that water does not get into the ears of your pet. Pets of the feline family do not tolerate bathing well and do not like bathing, as a result of which they can show aggression and anxiety. It is recommended that two people carry out the manipulation in order to hold the cat firmly, avoiding sudden movements that could cause water to get into the ears. When fluid gets deep into the ear canal, inflammation and pain occur. If after bathing the owners notice that the cat is constantly shaking its head and scratching its ear, then it is necessary to drip Vaseline or vegetable oil and contact a veterinary clinic.
Mechanical damage
In case of injury, it is important to check for foreign objects in the passage of the organ, since their remains can damage the eardrum.
This disorder is more common in cats, as they are prone to fights with other males. Due to injury, the animal begins to bleed from the ear canals. If the amount is small, the examination can be carried out at home to determine the size of the wound. It is also necessary to find out as soon as possible whether there is a foreign object left in the ear canal, which is likely to soon damage the eardrum. If there is a lot of blood flowing from the ear, then the cat needs to be taken to the veterinarian urgently, since the death of the animal is possible.
