Comparison of Multistix PRO dipsticks with other biochemical assays for determining urine protein (UP), urine creatinine (UC) and UP:UC ratio in dogs and cats

BACKGROUND: Urine protein: urine creatinine (UP:UC) ratio determined from the quantitative measurement of protein and creatinine in a single urine sample is the best feasible assessment of clinically significant proteinuria in dogs and cats. A dipstick that measures urine protein, urine creatinine, and UP:UC ratio has been used in human medicine and could have application for veterinary practice. OBJECTIVE: The objective of this study was to compare the Multistix PRO dipstick (Bayer Corporation, Elkhart, IN, USA) to other biochemical methods for determination of urine protein and creatinine, and UP:UC ratio in canine and feline urine. METHODS: A complete urinalysis, including sulfosalicylic acid (SSA) precipitation, was performed on urine samples submitted to our laboratory between February and April 2003 from 100 dogs and 49 cats. Urine protein and creatinine concentrations were determined by the Multistix PRO dipstick using a Clinitek 50 analyzer (Bayer) and compared with the results of SSA precipitation and quantitative biochemical analysis. The UP:UC ratios from the dipstick results (calculated by the Clinitek 50 and also manually) were compared with those calculated from quantitative values. Pearson product-moment correlation analysis and diagnostic sensitivity and specificity (using quantitative results as the gold standard) were determined. RESULTS: For both canine and feline urine, protein and creatinine concentrations determined by the Multistix PRO correlated closely with quantitative concentrations for protein (dogs r = .78, P = .0001; cats r = .87, P = .0001) and creatinine (dogs r = .78, P = .0001; cats r = .76, P = .0001). The Multistix PRO was more sensitive and less specific than SSA precipitation for diagnosing clinically significant proteinuria. UP:UC ratios obtained by manual calculation of dipstick results correlated best with quantitative UP:UC ratios in dogs, and had higher specificity but lower sensitivity for the diagnosis of proteinuria. In cats, UP:UC ratios determined by the dipstick method did not correlate (r = -.24, P = .0974) with quantitative values. CONCLUSIONS: The Multistix PRO, with manual calculation of UP:UC, may be a good alternative for the diagnosis of clinically significant proteinuria in dogs, but not cats. Dipstick creatinine concentration should be considered as an estimate.     

Pharmacokinetics of voriconazole after oral and intravenous administration to horses

OBJECTIVE: To characterize pharmacokinetics of voriconazole in horses after oral and IV administration and determine the in vitro physicochemical characteristics of the drug that may affect oral absorption and tissue distribution. ANIMALS: 6 adult horses. PROCEDURES: Horses were administered voriconazole (1 mg/kg, IV, or 4 mg/kg, PO), and plasma concentrations were measured by use of high-performance liquid chromatography. In vitro plasma protein binding and the octanol:water partition coefficient were also assessed. RESULTS: Voriconazole was adequately absorbed after oral administration in horses, with a systemic bioavailability of 135.75 +/- 18.41%. The elimination half-life after a single orally administered dose was 13.11 +/- 2.85 hours, and the maximum plasma concentration was 2.43 +/- 0.4 microg/mL. Plasma protein binding was 31.68%, and the octanol:water partition coefficient was 64.69. No adverse reactions were detected during the study. CONCLUSIONS AND CLINICAL RELEVANCE: Voriconazole has excellent absorption after oral administration and a long half-life in horses. On the basis of the results of this study, it was concluded that administration of voriconazole at a dosage of 4 mg/kg, PO, every 24 hours will attain plasma concentrations adequate for treatment of horses with fungal infections for which the fungi have a minimum inhibitory concentration 相似文献   

Transportation of cattle.

Until recent years, relatively little attention has been given to beef cattle transportation management and research in the United States As oulined in this article, it is clear that there are significant physiologic changes occurring in cattle as a result of transport and handling. These physiologic changes encompass, among others, effects on immune system function, disease incidence, and carcass quality. Significant advancements have been made during the past decade in the use of appropriate cattle-handling techniques, facility design,and research promoting our understanding and the attenuation of transport stress. Many issues surrounding livestock transport, such as temperature and ventilation during transit, use of rest stops, pretransit feeding regimens, and incidence of disease transmission via transport vehicles, need further research to enable continued provision of science-based recommendations to the livestock and transportation industries.     

Histomorphometric analysis of articular cartilage, zone of calcified cartilage, and subchondral bone plate in femoral heads from clinically normal dogs and dogs with moderate or severe osteoarthritis

OBJECTIVE: To quantify and compare the microscopic changes in articular cartilage (AC), zone of calcified cartilage (ZCC), and subchondral bone plate in femoral heads from clinically normal dogs and dogs with moderate or severe osteoarthritis. SAMPLE POPULATION: Femoral heads from clinically normal dogs (n = 16) and dogs with moderate (24) or severe (14) osteoarthritis. PROCEDURES: Femoral heads were allocated to 3 categories (normal, moderate, or severe osteoarthritis) on the basis of radiographic findings, macroscopic findings, and histologic grade determined by use of a modified Mankin scale. Equally spaced 2-mm sections were cut in each femoral head in a coronal or transverse plane. Thickness of the AC, ZCC, and subchondral bone plate was recorded. RESULTS: Mean thickness of AC was significantly greater in samples with moderate and severe osteoarthritis than those considered normal. Mean thickness of the ZCC was significantly greater in samples with moderate and severe osteoarthritis than those considered normal. Mean thickness of the subchondral bone plate in samples with severe osteoarthritis was significantly greater than those with moderate osteoarthritis and those considered normal. A significant decrease in AC thickness was detected in the proximomedial area of femoral heads with severe osteoarthritis, compared with those considered normal. CONCLUSIONS AND CLINICAL RELEVANCE: A cause and effect association between thickening of subchondral structures and thinning and loss of the overlying AC was not detected. Changes in AC were associated with changes in the subchondral bone plate, which is compatible with the theory of adaptation in response to altered load distribution.     

Accelerated induction of etorphine immobilization in blue wildebeest (Connochaetes taurinus) through the addition of hyaluronidase

ObjectiveTo study the effects of the addition of hyaluronidase (HA) to an etorphine/azaperone drug combination on induction times of immobilization.Study designExperimental part-randomized ‘blinded’ cross-over study.AnimalsEight wild managed blue wildebeest (Connochaetes taurinus).MethodsAnimals were immobilized, on separate occasions separated by two weeks, with one of four treatments. Treatments were; ‘Control drugs (CD), etorphine 0.01 mg kg⁻¹ + azaperone at 0.1 mg kg⁻¹; treatment 1 CD + 5000IU HA; treatment 2 CD + 7500 IU HA; and treatment 3 etorphine 0.007 mg kg⁻¹ + azaperone at 0.07 mg kg⁻¹ + 7500 IU HA. Times to first effect and to immobilization (from darting to possible to approach and blindfold) were measured. anova was used to compare treatments. Results are given in means ± SD (range).ResultsFor control, and treatments 1–3 respectively, times (in minutes) to first effect were 1.58 ± 0.42 (1.02–2.10), 1.64 ± 0.42 (0.95–2.17), 1.12 ± 0.24 (0.80–1.48) and 1.60 ± 0.21 (1.13–1.88) and to immobilization were 5.38 ± 1.53 (3.82–8.07), 3.80 ± 1.14 (2.02–5.50), 3.51 ± 1.08 (2.28–5.52) and 4.46 ± 0.67 (3.30–5.40). Compared to control, time to first effect for treatment 2 was significantly shorter. Time to immobilization was significantly quicker in all three treatments containing HA than that for control.Conclusion and clinical relevanceHyaluronidase can reduce the time to immobilization when used in the immobilizing dart, and might be usefully incorporated into etorphine combinations for darting wildlife.     

Cumulative racing-speed exercise distance cluster as a risk factor for fatal musculoskeletal injury in Thoroughbred racehorses in California

Thoroughbred racehorses which suffered a fatal musculoskeletal injury (FMI) while racing or race training at a California racetrack during 9 months of 1991 were studied to determine the importance of intensive, high-speed exercise schedules prior to injury. Seventy-seven horses which sustained an FMI while racing and 45 horses which sustained an FMI while race training were successfully matched by race or timed workout session with one control horse and included in the analyses. Race and timed workout (racing-speed exercise) histories were obtained for the case and control horses. Two-month cumulative, racing-speed cutoff distances were calculated from the control horse sample by two methods. Median racing-speed exercise frequencies and distances of the control horses were used to estimate age-specific (2, 3, 4 and ≥ 5 years), 2-month cumulative, racing-speed distances (Method 1). For the second method, the last race or timed workout for each control horse occurring just prior to, or on the date of injury for the matched case horse was identified. Cumulative racing-speed distances 2 months prior to these exercise events were determined for each control horse and used to estimate median age-specific (2, 3, 4 and ≥ 5 years), 2-month cumulative racing-speed distances (Method 2). The cumulative cutoff distances estimated from both methods were used to classify each matched pair according to the presence or absence of a 2-month cumulative, racing-speed distance which exceeded the age-appropriate cutoff distance (exercise distance cluster) within 6 months prior to injury. Manlel-Haenszel matched-pair odds ratios and 95% confidence limits were calculated separately for the racing and race-training fatal injuries. The relative risk for racing FMI was significantly greater for those horses which ran 2-month, cumulative racing and timed workout distances in excess of the cutoff values determined with Method 1 (relative risk (RR) = 3.0, 95% confidence interval (CI) = 1.2, 7.6) and Method 2 (RR = 7.2, 95% CI = 2.6, 20.6). The relative risk for race-training FMI was significantly greater for those horses which ran 2-month, cumulative racing and timed workout distances in excess of the cutoff values determined with Method 2 (RR = 3.4, 95% CI =1.0, 13.2).     

What is your diagnosis? Marked hyperchloremia in a dog

Abstract: A 5‐year‐old neutered male Cavalier King Charles Spaniel was evaluated for a 3‐week history of progressive paresis. The dog had been receiving potassium citrate capsules to acidify urine for the past 2 years because of an earlier history of urolithiasis. Results of neurologic examination, spinal cord radiography, and magnetic resonance imaging of the skull and spinal cord revealed no lesions that could have accounted for the neurologic signs. The main abnormalities on a clinical chemistry profile were marked hyperchloremia (179 mmol/L, reference interval 108–122 mmol/L) and an anion gap of ?50.4 mmol/L (reference interval 16.3–28.6 mmol/L). Because of the severe hyperchloremia, serum bromide concentration was measured (400 mg/dL; toxic concentration >150 mg/dL; some dogs may tolerate up to 300 mg/dL). Analysis of the potassium citrate capsules, which had been compounded at a local pharmacy, yielded a mean bromide concentration of 239 mg/capsule. Administration of the capsules was discontinued and there was rapid resolution of the dog's neurologic signs. This case of extreme bromide toxicity, which apparently resulted from inadvertent use of bromide instead of citrate at the pharmacy, illustrates the importance of knowing common interferents with analyte methodologies and of pursing logical additional diagnostic tests based on clinical and laboratory evidence, even when a patient's history appears to rule out a potential etiology.