Serum Ferritin in Obese Dogs: Changes and Comparison with Other Analytes.

Canine obesity is the most common nutritional disorder and is associated with decreased quality of life and longevity as well as comorbidities including cardiorespiratory, endocrine, oncologic, or orthopaedic disorders. Ferritin is a major acute-phase protein in dogs, increasing during inflammation; however, it could also be affected by other conditions, including trauma, iron metabolism dysregulations, neoplasia, or hypoxia. Higher ferritin levels have been reported in obese humans, but ferritin has not been explored in canine obesity. To evaluate the possible changes in serum ferritin in canine obesity, ferritin levels from lean/normal weight (CG, n = 55) and overweight/obese dogs (OG, n = 37) were measured, together with complete hemogram and biochemical analyses. Statistically significant higher ferritin levels (1.2-fold) were found in OG (median, (interquartile range), 204 (166-227.5) µg/L) in comparison to CG animals (172 (137-210) µg/L)), with median levels of ferritin in OG dogs above the reference range for healthy animals in our laboratory (60-190 µg/L). In addition, statistically significant higher mean corpuscular volume (MCV), mean cell haemoglobin concentration (MCHC), total proteins, globulins, haptoglobin, total ferric fixation capacity (TIBC), alkaline phosphatase (ALP), butyrylcholinesterase (BChE), triglycerides, and calcium were observed in OG in comparison to CG. The higher levels in ferritin, together with higher TBIC, haematocrit, and MCV, could indicate tissue hypoxia in obese dogs.

Endoscopic Endocautery Polypectomy for the Treatment of Duodenal and Gastric Polyps in a Cat.

Endoscopic polypectomy is commonly performed in human medicine, with large-scale studies reported. However, few reports have described its use in veterinary medicine and, specifically, the procedure in the case of duodenal polyps in cats has not been reported. A 7 kg 14-year-old cat presented with recurrent vomiting for several months. Gastroduodenoscopy revealed a pedunculated polyp at the pyloric antrum and another in the duodenum, with its head protruding into the pylorus. Endoscopic polypectomy was performed using an electrosurgical snare with no recurrence of clinical signs after six months. Duodenal polypectomy in cats may be difficult because of space limitation but it can be safe, minimally invasive, and successful, thus avoiding more invasive surgical techniques. Endoscopic polypectomy may be a viable alternative to surgery in cats with gastric and duodenal polyps.

Measurement of urea and creatinine in saliva of dogs: a pilot study.

BACKGROUND: Urea and creatinine in saliva have been reported to be possible markers of chronic kidney disease (CKD) in humans. The aim of this study was to assess if urea and creatinine could be measured in canine saliva, and to evaluate their possible changes in situations of CKD. RESULTS: The spectrophotometric assays for urea and creatinine measurements in saliva of dogs showed intra- and inter-assay imprecision lower than 12% and coefficients of correlation close to 1 in linearity under dilution tests. Healthy dogs showed median salivary concentrations of urea of 39.6 mg/dL and creatinine of 0.30 mg/dL, whereas dogs with CKD showed median salivary urea of 270.1 mg/dL and creatinine of 1.86 mg/dL. Positive high correlations were found between saliva and serum activities of the two analytes (urea, r = 0.909; P < 0.001; creatinine, r = 0.819; P < 0.001). CONCLUSIONS: Urea and creatinine concentrations can be measured in canine saliva with commercially available spectrophotometric assays. Both analytes showed higher values in saliva of dogs with CKD compared with healthy dogs and their values were highly correlated with those in serum in our study conditions.

An Atypical Case of Leishmaniasis Associated with Chronic Duodenitis in a Dog.

We describe an atypical case of duodenal leishmaniasis in a boxer dog presenting with chronic diarrhea and poor general condition. Antidiarrheic therapy was previously administered without success and inflammatory bowel disease localized to the small intestine was suspected, given the chronic clinical signs and by ruling out other known causes of gastrointestinal inflammation. Endoscopic biopsy of duodenum showed a moderate increase in lamina propria lymphocytes, plasma cells, and macrophages. Basophilic bodies were seen in the cytoplasm of numerous macrophages, suggestive of Leishmania spp, confirmed by immunostaining, and a diagnosis of granulomatous duodenitis associated to Leishmania infection was made. After 7 mo of therapy, a significant clinical improvement and weight gain were observed, and endoscopic histology showed no evidence of Leishmania. A progressive decline of anti-leishmanial antibody titer was also observed during follow-up. This report emphasizes the importance of atypical symptoms and the unusual location of visceral leishmaniasis, suggesting the need to consider leishmaniasis in the differential diagnosis of canine chronic enteritis, especially in endemic areas.

Evaluation of various biomarkers for kidney monitoring during canine leishmaniosis treatment.

BACKGROUND: The objective of this study was to evaluate and compare the evolution of the profile currently recommended by the International Renal Interest Society (IRIS) (sCr, UPC and sSDMA) with a panel of other different kidney biomarkers during treatment for canine leishmaniosis. This panel included three urinary glomerular biomarkers (uIgG, uCRP and uferritin) and three urinary tubular biomarkers (uGGT, uNAG and uRBP). These biomarkers were measured in two groups of dogs with canine leishmaniosis at IRIS stage I. Group 1: dogs showing proteinuria (UPC > 0.5) before treatment which did not decrease after treatment; Group 2: dogs showing proteinuria before treatment which decreased after treatment. RESULTS: Group 1 showed no significant changes in any biomarker after treatment. In group 2, among the biomarkers recommended by the IRIS, only UPC showed a significant decrease after treatment. However all biomarkers of glomerular damage showed a significant decrease after treatment, with uIgG/Cr and uCRP/Cr showing the greater decreases. In addition uRBP/Cr and uNAG/Cr showed significant decreases after treatment. CONCLUSIONS: In dogs with leishmaniosis at IRIS stage I that reduced UPC after treatment, there were no significant changes in serum creatinine and sSDMA. However, all the urine biomarkers evaluated with exception of uGGT showed a significant decrease. These decreases were more evident in those markers related with glomerular function, being uIgG/Cr the biomarker more associated with UPC. Further studies involving a larger number of animals and histological analysis of the kidney would be recommended to confirm these findings and evaluate the routine practical use of these urine biomarkers in canine leishmaniosis.