Abstract
Objective—To determine whether conscious, unsedated cats will inhale a nebulized material administered via a facemask and whether this material will reach the lower airways.
Animals—20 healthy adult cats.
Procedure—Technetium Tc 99m-diaminetriaminopentaacetic acid (99mTc-DTPA) was nebulized into a spacer and administered to the cats via a closely fitting facemask. By use of a gamma camera, images were then immediately obtained to determine the distribution of 99mTc-DTPA within the lower airways.
Results—Images obtained by use of the gamma camera revealed that all 20 cats had inhaled 99mTc-DTPA from the facemask. In each cat, deposition of the radiopharmaceutical agent was evident throughout the lung fields.
Conclusions and Clinical Relevance—Awake cats that were not used to the application of a facemask did inhale substances from such a device. Aerosolization of medications may be a feasible route of administration for cats with lower airway disease. (Am J Vet Res 2004;65:806–809)
