Peer-reviewed veterinary case report
Protein in urine in cats - causes and signs
By Rayhel, Laura H et al.Ā·Published in Journal of feline medicine and surgeryĀ·2020Ā·Department of Veterinary Clinical Sciences, United StatesĀ·View original on PubMed ā
PetCaseFinder translated the abstract of this peer-reviewed paper into plain English so pet owners can read it. We do not publish original research ā every detail traces back to the citation above. How we work ā
Original publication title: Clinicopathologic and pathologic characteristics of feline proteinuric kidney disease.
- Species:
- cat
Plain-English summary
A 3.5-year-old male cat was diagnosed with protein-losing kidney disease, which caused symptoms like swelling and low protein levels in the blood. The condition was primarily due to immune-complex glomerulonephritis (ICGN), a type of kidney disease where the immune system attacks the kidneys. Cats with ICGN who received immunosuppressive medications lived longer, averaging 244 days, compared to just 17 days for those who did not receive treatment. This highlights the importance of early diagnosis and treatment for young male cats showing signs of kidney issues.
People also search for: cat kidney disease symptoms Ā· proteinuria in cats treatment Ā· ICGN in cats survival rate
Abstract
OBJECTIVES: The aim of this study was to describe the causes, clinicopathologic features and outcomes of feline protein-losing nephropathy (proteinuria secondary to glomerular disease [PLN]). METHODS: Kidney biopsy/necropsy samples from proteinuric cats submitted to the International Veterinary Renal Pathology Service were retrospectively reviewed. Diagnoses based on histopathology were categorized by primary disease compartment. Clinicopathologic variables at diagnosis, development of hypoalbuminemia, anemia, hypertension, azotemia and effusion/edema, and survival were compared between cats with immune-complex glomerulonephritis (ICGN) and other causes of PLN. RESULTS: Fifty-eight percent (n = 31/53) of proteinuric cats had ICGN and 74% (n = 31/42) of cats with PLN had ICGN. Cats with glomerular diseases other than ICGN had a higher median urine protein:creatinine ratio than ICGN cats (14.5 vs 6.5;<0.001). Onset of PLN occurred at a young age; median age at diagnosis was 3.5 years in ICGN cats vs 1.3 years in cats with other glomerular diseases ( = 0.026). Development of complications such as hypoalbuminemia, anemia, hypertension, azotemia and effusion/edema were common, regardless of the cause of PLN, and were not different between ICGN and cats with other glomerular diseases. Male cats were over-represented in the ICGN group ( = 0.003). Median survival time (MST) for all cats with PLN was 94 days (range 3-1848 days). Survival was not different between cats with ICGN and cats with other glomerular diseases. MST in ICGN cats that developed effusion was shorter (94 days) than cats that did not (700 days; = 0.035). MST in IGCN cats that received immunosuppressive medications was longer (244 days) than cats that did not (17 days, = 0.039). CONCLUSIONS AND RELEVANCE: Taken together, these data suggest that clinical suspicion for glomerular proteinuria should increase in young, male cats with higher degrees of proteinuria, and immune-mediated disease is common. Further studies are needed to determine the effect of immunosuppression on morbidity and mortality in cats with ICGN.
Find similar cases for your pet
PetCaseFinder finds other peer-reviewed reports of pets with the same symptoms, plus a plain-English summary of what was tried across them.
Search related cases āOriginal publication on PubMed: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/32456516/