Dry foods with low magnesium help dissolve cat bladder stones faster

Abstract

OBJECTIVE: To compare the efficacy and safety of using 2 commercially available, low-magnesium, urine-acidifying dry foods to dissolve sterile struvite uroliths in cats. DESIGN: Prospective, multicenter, randomized clinical trial . SAMPLE: 37 cats with presumed struvite uroliths. PROCEDURES: Cats were randomly assigned to be fed 1 of 2 low-magnesium, urine-acidifying dry foods (food A or B). For each cat, physical examination, urinalysis, and abdominal radiography were performed weekly to assess treatment response. RESULTS: 32 cats had complete urolith dissolution. Mean ± SD times for a 50% reduction in urolith size (0.69 ± 0.1 weeks) and complete urolith dissolution (13.0 ± 2.6 days) were significantly shorter for cats fed food A, compared with those (1.75 ± 0.27 weeks and 27.0 ± 2.6 days, respectively) for cats fed food B. At study termination, mean ± SD urine pH (6.083 ± 0.105) for cats fed food A was lower than that (6.431 ± 0.109) for cats fed food B. In 5 cats, uroliths did not dissolve and were subsequently determined to be composed of 100% ammonium urate (n = 4) or 100% calcium oxalate (1). Adverse events associated with diet were not observed in any of the cats. CONCLUSIONS AND CLINICAL RELEVANCE: Results indicated that dietary dissolution is safe and effective for eradication of sterile struvite uroliths in cats. Cats fed food A had faster urolith dissolution than did cats fed food B. Lack of a reduction in urolith size at 2 weeks after diet initiation was indicative of misdiagnosis or noncompliance.