My cat is chronically congested

Question
Hello,

I adopted my cat Lucy about 5 months ago.  She is currently 7 or 8 months old.  Ever since then, she has been chronically congested.  She makes weird snoring noises, can't meow when she tries, and just sounds really congested.  I've taken her to my vet numerous times.  A diagnosis of the Herpes virus was made at that time.  I've brought her back several times, and she's been on numerous antibiotics to treat any kind of secondary bacterial infection.  They haven't worked.  More recently, she was put on Interferon, an antiviral.  She's been on it a week, and not much has changed.  She eats, plays, sleeps like any normal kitten would do.  Her feline leukemia was negative, and the vet said this "might just be her"....I asked about an x-ray and if that would show anything, and he said most likely not, just that she is congested.  My questions are:  could she have some kind of polyp or growth maybe and could an x-ray show that?  Steroid shots have worked but of course they wear off, and my vet said he doesn't want to keep doing that because that may weaken her immune system.  I've read many articles about the "snuffles", rhinotracheitis, and this is all about the herpes virus.  Do you think its possible that something else may be going on?  Is there any way to check for anything else, like an x-ray, blood work, etc....  Are there any specialist vets out there that specialize in the upper respiratory tract?  I'm kind of stuck, and I'm wondering if the interferon will work.  Any insight or advice would be greatly appreciated on what the next step should be for Lucy.  

Thanks so much!
Julanne

Answer
YOU are on the right track. If your vet keeps beating around the bush, get a second opinion.

xrays will tell you if there are bony changes or density problems in the nasal cavity (perferably the xray taken with a dental xray machine- if your vet does not have this, in my eyes they are in the dark age) and yes, polyps can cause chronic upper resp problems.

get a second opinion to rule out everything else.