Peer-reviewed veterinary case report
Early urine tests to detect kidney disease in dogs with leishmaniosis
By Ruiz, Patricia et al.·Published in Veterinary parasitology·2023·MINVET Research Group. Departamento de Medicina Animal, Spain·View original on PubMed →
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Original publication title: Urinary cystatin C and N-acetyl-beta-D-glucosaminidase (NAG) as early biomarkers for renal disease in dogs with leishmaniosis.
- Species:
- dog
Plain-English summary
A group of dogs with leishmaniasis (a disease caused by a parasite) were tested for early signs of kidney damage using new urine tests. Traditional tests often miss early problems, but researchers found that levels of urinary cystatin C and N-acetyl-beta-D-glucosaminidase were significantly higher in dogs with kidney issues related to leishmaniasis. These tests could help veterinarians identify kidney problems sooner, allowing for earlier treatment. This is important because kidney damage can worsen if not caught early.
People also search for: dog leishmaniasis kidney problems · early signs of kidney disease in dogs · urinary tests for dog kidney health
Abstract
Canine leishmaniasis (CanL) is a disease caused by Leishmania infantum that can vary from a subclinical infection to a severe disease. Dogs affected with CanL present varying degrees of renal dysfunction. Unfortunately, traditional biomarkers such as urea and creatinine detect renal damage in advanced stages of the disease, so more accurate biomarkers are needed. Hence, we aimed to study how urinary cystatin C (CysC) and N-acetyl-beta-D-glucosaminidase (NAG), behave in dogs with CanL at different stages of the disease. Eighty-six CanL infected dogs were classified according to LeishVet stages: LI (16 dogs), LIIa (12 dogs), LIIb (12 dogs), LIII (16 dogs) and LIV (30 dogs); as a control, 17 healthy dogs were studied. Blood samples were collected for complete haematological and biochemistry analysis including plasma cystatin C. Urine analysis included urine specific gravity (USG), urine protein to creatinine ratio (UPC), CysC and NAG expressed as a ratio with creatinine uCysCc (μg/g) and uNAGc (IU/g). The haematological, biochemical and urinary analysis coincided with the LeishVet guidelines. The statistical study of the uCysCc ratio and the uNAGc, showed significant increase when compared against control starting from group LI (p < 0.05). Interestingly, when the cut-off values were calculated using the ROC curve, uCysCc (258.85 µg/g) and uNAGc (2.25 IU/g) 75 % of the dogs included in LI groups surpassed the threshold. Hence our study indicates that uCysCc and uNAGc, could help to detect early renal damage in CanL affected dogs.
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Search related cases →Original publication on PubMed: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/37030024/