RESUMEN
BACKGROUND: Urine specific gravity (USG) is an integral part of the urinalysis and a key component of many clinical decisions, and fluctuations in USG have the potential to impact case management. OBJECTIVES: To determine the intraindividual variability of first morning USG results in healthy dogs. ANIMALS: One hundred three healthy client-owned dogs. METHODS: Dogs were deemed healthy based on clinical history and physical examination findings. Repeated USG measurements were performed over the course of 2 weeks. Three urine samples were collected each week for a total of 6 samples per dog. Sample collection was distributed evenly throughout the week. Urine samples were acquired immediately upon waking and before any ingestion of liquids, food, or exertion of physical activity in the dogs. All measurements were made using the same Misco digital refractometer. RESULTS: Intraindividual USG was variable over the course of the study. The mean difference between the minimum and maximum USG for each dog was 0.015 (SD, 0.007). The within-week difference between the minimum and maximum USG was less than over the complete 2-week study (0.009 [SD 0.006] for week 1 and 0.010 [SD 0.007] for week 2). The mean coefficient of variance across all 6 time points was 15.4% (SD 8.97%). CONCLUSIONS AND CLINICAL IMPORTANCE: Clinically important variation occurs in USG in healthy animals and might impact clinical decision-making when diagnostic cutoff points are utilized. Clinicians should be aware of inherent variability in this clinical variable when analyzing results.
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Perros/orina , Gravedad Específica , Orina/química , Animales , Femenino , Masculino , Refractometría/veterinaria , Urinálisis/veterinariaRESUMEN
Chronic vomiting in cats is a common presenting problem seen in veterinary practice today. The initial step when presented with a vomiting patient is to differentiate between vomiting and regurgitation or dysphagia. There are numerous causes for chronic vomiting in cats, and therefore a detailed and comprehensive patient history and a systematic diagnostic approach are key steps in determining the cause for vomiting and the most appropriate treatment plan. Common causes for chronic vomiting in cats may include inflammatory bowel disease, food allergy, gastrointestinal motility disorders, neoplasia, and extra-gastrointestinal diseases, such as renal disease, hepatobiliary disease, and hyperthyroidism.
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Enfermedades de los Gatos/etiología , Vómitos/veterinaria , Animales , Enfermedades de los Gatos/diagnóstico , Gatos , Enfermedad Crónica , Vómitos/complicaciones , Vómitos/diagnósticoRESUMEN
The diagnosis of pancreatic disease in small animal veterinary patients is complicated by nonspecific clinical signs and the limitations of diagnostic testing. Pancreatic cytology is a potential diagnostic tool, but safety and diagnostic yield are not well characterized in large patient cohorts. We hypothesized that pancreatic fine-needle aspiration (FNA) in dogs would frequently generate diagnostic-quality samples and subsequent adverse medical events would be uncommon. Ninety-two client-owned dogs undergoing pancreatic FNA for clinical diagnostic evaluation were identified retrospectively by a computer search for pancreatic cytology submissions. Archived slides were reviewed by a single board-certified clinical pathologist using a predetermined descriptive scheme. Medical records were reviewed for adverse events 48 hr following FNA, for concurrent procedures and diagnosis in patients with adverse events and for histology results. Diagnostic yield was calculated as the % cases in which a cytologic diagnosis could be achieved; correlation with histology or other confirmatory testing was determined when possible. Diagnostic yield was 73.5%, and the major pathologic process identified cytologically correlated with confirmatory testing in 10 out of 11 cases. There were 7 adverse events, all in dogs with significant comorbidities or undergoing other invasive procedures. Pancreatic FNA in dogs has a good diagnostic yield and a low rate of clinical complications in a large case series of dogs. Correlation of cytology and histology results was high in a limited number of cases.
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Carcinoma/veterinaria , Enfermedades de los Perros/diagnóstico , Neoplasias Pancreáticas/veterinaria , Animales , Biopsia con Aguja Fina/veterinaria , Carcinoma/diagnóstico , Enfermedades de los Perros/patología , Perros , Femenino , Masculino , Páncreas/patología , Neoplasias Pancreáticas/diagnóstico , Estudios Retrospectivos , Sensibilidad y EspecificidadRESUMEN
The safety of fine-needle aspiration (FNA) of the feline pancreas has not been reported. The incidence of complications following ultrasound-guided pancreatic FNA in 73 cats (pancreatic aspirate [PA] cats) with clinical and ultrasonographic evidence of pancreatic disease was compared with complications in two groups of matched control cats also diagnosed with pancreatic disease that either had abdominal organs other than the pancreas aspirated (control FNA, n = 63) or no aspirates performed (control no FNA, n = 61). The complication rate within 48 h of the ultrasound and/or aspirate procedure did not differ among the PA cats (11%), control FNA (14%) or control no FNA (8%) cats. There was no difference in rate of survival to discharge (82%, 84% and 83%, respectively) or length of hospital stay among groups. The cytologic recovery rate for the pancreatic samples was 67%. Correlation with histopathology, available in seven cases, was 86%. Pancreatic FNA in cats is a safe procedure requiring further investigation to establish diagnostic value.
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Biopsia con Aguja Fina/veterinaria , Enfermedades de los Gatos/patología , Neoplasias Pancreáticas/veterinaria , Seguridad , Animales , Biopsia con Aguja Fina/métodos , Estudios de Casos y Controles , Gatos , Páncreas/patología , Enfermedades Pancreáticas , Neoplasias Pancreáticas/patologíaRESUMEN
Little is known about the potential consequences of pancreatic tissue sampling in dogs. The goal of the present study was to evaluate changes in serum trypsin-like immunoreactivity and canine-specific pancreatic lipase after pancreatic fine-needle aspiration and surgical biopsy in 27 clinically healthy dogs. Presurgical, ultrasound-guided aspiration of the pancreas was performed with the dogs under sedation. Subsequently, all the dogs underwent intraoperative pancreatic fine-needle aspiration and clamshell biopsy. After euthanasia, pancreata were sectioned for histopathologic evaluation. Serum pancreatic enzyme levels were measured at 3 time points: baseline, after ultrasound-guided aspiration, and after intraoperative aspiration and biopsy. No significant differences were detected among mean serum pancreatic lipase values at any point (P > 0.05). Serum trypsin-like immunoreactivity did not change from baseline (18.2 +/- 2.1 microg/dl; mean +/- standard error) after ultrasound-guided aspiration (13.6 +/- 2.2 microg/dl) but increased significantly after intraoperative sampling (44.8 +/- 1.9 microg/dl; P < 0.0005). After surgical biopsy, the 20 dogs that had both ultrasound-guided and intraoperative sampling had a higher mean (SE) serum trypsin-like immunoreactivity (44.8 +/- 1.9 microg/dl) than the 7 dogs that had only intraoperative samples taken (36.4 +/- 4.1 microg/dl; P < 0.05). All 27 pancreata were grossly normal before intraoperative sampling. Pancreatic sampling was associated with increased serum trypsin-like immunoreactivity and mild, peracute necrosis, inflammation, hemorrhage, and fibrin deposition. Tissue damage from sampling was not sufficient to cause an elevation in canine-specific pancreatic lipase in the time frame evaluated. Further studies are needed to determine longer-term effects of pancreatic sampling on enzyme levels and clinical outcome.
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Perros/sangre , Enzimas/sangre , Páncreas/enzimología , Animales , Biopsia/veterinaria , Biopsia con Aguja Fina , Recuento de Células Sanguíneas/veterinaria , Enfermedades de los Perros/sangre , Enfermedades de los Perros/enzimología , Endosonografía , Lipasa/sangre , Lipasa/metabolismo , Páncreas/citología , Páncreas/patología , Pancreatitis/enzimología , Pancreatitis/veterinaria , Valores de Referencia , Tripsina/sangre , Tripsina/metabolismoRESUMEN
Canine Lyme disease is caused by the spirochete Borrelia burgdorferi after transmission by an Ixodes tick, typically resulting in joint pain, fever and lethargy. Lyme nephritis is a poorly characterized syndrome associated with severe glomerular and tubular renal injury and poor clinical outcome in young to middle-aged dogs positive for exposure to B. burgdorferi. The aims of this study were to identify associations between natural exposure to B. burgdorferi and the presence of microalbuminuria in nonclinical young Labrador and Golden Retrievers and to compare two commonly used serologic tests available to document B. burgdorferi exposure: the Western blot and the commercial point-of-care C6 peptide enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) tests. Microalbuminuria was assessed using a commercial point-of-care ELISA specific for canine albumin. Blood and urine samples from 268 asymptomatic Labrador and Golden Retrievers were included. Of these, 18.7% were positive for B. burgdorferi exposure according to the C6 ELISA; 21.2% were positive for natural exposure to B. burgdorferi and 11.5% for vaccinal antibodies according to the Western blot. The agreement rate was 93% between the two tests (kappa = 0.78, P < 0.0001) for natural exposure. Urine from 6.1% of the dogs was positive for microalbuminuria. There was no association between microalbuminuria and exposure to B. burgdorferi based on results of a Western blot (P = 0.57) or C6 ELISA (P = 0.53). Microalbuminuria is likely not a consequence of B. burgdorferi exposure in young nonclinical Labrador and Golden Retrievers.