Occurrence and clinical outcomes of bacteriuria in 9 cats affected by neurogenic bladder: a retrospective cases series (2021-2024).

To evaluate the occurrence and the clinical outcome of bacteriuria in cats with neurogenic bladder (NB) resulting from chronic thoracolumbar spinal cord injury. 9 paraplegic cats with NB due to chronic T3-L3 spinal cord injury, housed in a shelter for neurologically impaired cats. Retrospective case series. Medical records from the Veterinary Teaching Hospital of the University of Bari (Italy) between January 2021 and May 2024 were reviewed. Cats with a confirmed diagnosis of NB, managed exclusively via manual bladder expression, resulting from chronic (> 3 months) thoracolumbar spinal cord injury were included. The keywords neurogenic bladder and spinal cord injury were used to identify cases. All 9 cats experienced at least 1 episode of bacteriuria over the observational period. Across 27 clinical evaluations, 18 positive urine cultures were identified. Of these 18 cultures, 12 were classified as subclinical bacteriuria (SB) and 5 as urinary tract infections (UTIs); 1 was unclassified. None of the SB episodes were treated with antibiotics. Progression from SB to UTI was observed in only 2 cats. This study highlights a high occurrence of bacteriuria in cats with NB, with SB being the most common presentation. In the absence of antimicrobial therapy, SB progressed to UTI in only 2 out of 9 cats. These finding suggested that, although diagnostic criteria may have limitations in this population, in the absence of comorbidities, a conservative approach to the management of bacteriuria in cats with NB, monitoring SB and reserving antimicrobial treatment for UTIs, may be appropriate.