The purpose of the Cardiomyopathy in Cats Registry (CCR) is to find predictors of disease progression and symptoms in cats with disease of the heart muscle (cardiomyopathy) so that veterinarians can provide the best recommendations and treatments.
The CCR gathers information from the hospital visit and conventional diagnostic testing to gain insight into how cardiomyopathy affects the health of individual cats and risk factors for complications such as heart failure. The CCR also acts as a repository of blood samples that can be used to discover new disease markers and to develop new tests.
A Collaboration
The CCR is a collaboration between three veterinary cardiology practices, each with a patient population that includes a high number of cats with cardiomyopathy and investigators with expertise involving cardiomyopathy. The CCR also includes researchers and physicians interested in the similarities between cardiomyopathy in the cat and human patients. Some of the lessons learned in cats might also help humans with cardiomyopathy.
Data
Data from eligible cats examined at any of the three cardiology practices are automatically entered into the CCR. Cat owners might be asked via phone or email to provide periodic updates regarding their cat’s health status. Reports that are disseminated to the public or scientific community use de-identified data so that the cats and their owners remain anonymous.