Peer-reviewed veterinary case report
How a blood test helps find septic fluid buildup in dogs
By Meyer, Rachel et al.·Published in Journal of veterinary internal medicine·2026·MedVet Chicago, United States·View original on PubMed →
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Original publication title: Utility of neutrophil gelatinase-associated lipocalin in identifying septic cavitary effusions in dogs.
- Species:
- dog
Plain-English summary
Fifty dogs with fluid buildup in their chest or abdomen were studied to see if a specific protein called NGAL could help identify infections in the fluid. The results showed that dogs with septic (infected) effusions had much higher levels of NGAL in their fluid compared to those with other causes of fluid buildup, like cancer or inflammation. This means that measuring NGAL levels could be a useful tool for veterinarians to determine if an infection is present in dogs with these symptoms.
People also search for: dog fluid in abdomen treatment · dog pleural effusion symptoms · septic effusion in dogs treatment
Abstract
BACKGROUND: Neutrophil gelatinase-associated lipocalin (NGAL) is an accurate marker of septic cavitary effusions in people. HYPOTHESIS/OBJECTIVES: To evaluate the utility of serum and effusion NGAL concentrations in differentiating septic effusions from effusions caused by other etiologies in dogs. ANIMALS: Fifty dogs with pleural or peritoneal effusion. METHODS: Ten dogs were prospectively enrolled into each of 5 groups based on effusion etiology: hypoalbuminemia, increased hydrostatic pressure, neoplastic, inflammatory, and septic. Concentrations of NGAL were measured in both serum and effusion. RESULTS: While median serum NGAL concentrations did not significantly differ between dogs with hypoalbuminemia (24.8 ng/mL, range 5.0-110.0 ng/mL), increased hydrostatic pressure (13.2 ng/mL, range 5.8-46.9 ng/mL), abdominal neoplasia (13.8 ng/mL, range 3.2-27.3 ng/mL), inflammatory (15.8 ng/mL, 5.6-36.6 ng/mL), or septic causes (19.2 ng/mL, range 7.2-64.8 ng/mL) of effusion (P = .272), median effusion NGAL concentrations were significantly higher in the septic group (194.4 ng/mL, range 120.0-1471.1ng/mL) than in the hypoalbuminemic (10.7 ng/mL, range 4.1-27.8 ng/mL, P < .001), hydrostatic (22.7 ng/mL, range 11.3-56.7 ng/mL, P < .001), neoplastic (65 ng/mL, range 15.7-215.3 ng/mL, P < .001), or inflammatory (45 ng/mL, range 33.8-195 ng/mL, P < .001) groups. CONCLUSIONS AND CLINICAL IMPORTANCE: Concentrations of NGAL in effusions were significantly higher in septic effusions than in effusions of other etiologies. These findings suggest that effusion NGAL concentrations could be a helpful marker in the identification of cases with septic effusion.
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Search related cases →Original publication on PubMed: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/41742571/