Peer-reviewed veterinary case report
Blood urea nitrogen to albumin ratio linked to severity in dogs
By Roinestad, Karina E et al.Ā·Published in Journal of veterinary emergency and critical care (San Antonio, Tex. : 2001)Ā·2025Ā·Emergency Department, United StatesĀ·View original on PubMed ā
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Original publication title: Retrospective Evaluation of Blood Urea Nitrogen-to-Albumin Ratio as a Novel Biomarker of Illness Severity in Dogs With Bacterial Pneumonia (2018-2023): 30 Cases.
- Species:
- dog
Plain-English summary
A group of 30 dogs diagnosed with bacterial pneumonia were evaluated to see if a specific blood test (the BUN-to-albumin ratio) could help predict how severe their illness was. The results showed that a higher ratio was linked to longer hospital stays, a greater need for oxygen support, and a lower chance of survival. While this test shows potential for assessing the severity of pneumonia in dogs, more research is needed to establish clear guidelines for its use.
People also search for: dog pneumonia symptoms Ā· dog oxygen therapy Ā· bacterial pneumonia treatment in dogs
Abstract
OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the relationship between the BUN-to-albumin (BUN/ALB) ratio and markers of illness severity including mortality, length of hospitalization, oxygen dependence, duration of oxygen therapy, and presence of multilobar pneumonia in canine patients with bacterial pneumonia. DESIGN: Retrospective medical records review, 2018-2023. SETTING: A private practice referral hospital and a university teaching hospital. ANIMALS: Thirty dogs with confirmed bacterial pneumonia MEASUREMENTS AND MAIN RESULTS: We found a higher BUN/ALB ratio was correlated with increased length of hospitalization, need for initial oxygen supplementation, presence of multilobar pneumonia, and decreased odds of survival in dogs with bacterial pneumonia. CONCLUSIONS: Although the BUN/ALB ratio shows promise as a marker of severity of bacterial pneumonia in canine patients, future studies are warranted to determine optimal cutoff values and how it can be used to predict disease severity.
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Search related cases āOriginal publication on PubMed: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/41313644/