Hypocobalaminaemia is uncommon in cats in the United Kingdom

Abstract

Recent work has highlighted the importance of cobalamin deficiency in cats with a range of alimentary tract diseases. The primary aim of our study was to determine the incidence of subnormal cobalamin concentrations in sick cats with and without alimentary system disorders. Firstly, serum cobalamin concentrations were measured in a population of cats, with and without gastrointestinal (GI) disease, evaluated at a referral hospital. In the second part of the study, the incidence of cobalamin deficiency was assessed in samples submitted to a commercial laboratory specifically for cobalamin measurement. For both studies, a validated radioimmunoassay was used to measure serum cobalamin concentrations (reference range: > 150 pg/ml). In the first part of the study, 132 cats were included and none of these cats had subnormal cobalamin concentrations (median=1,172; range: 278 to >2,000). There were no differences in cobalamin concentrations between cats with alimentary system disorders, and those with diseases of other organs. In the second part, 682 samples were submitted for cobalamin assay over a period of 3 years, and only one cat had a result below the reference range (median=794; range: 147 to >2,000). Cobalamin deficiency was rare in the population tested and this may suggest that the incidence of this biochemical abnormality is less common than reported in the USA.

Fig 1

Box and whisker plot demonstrating the effect of age on serum cobalamin concentrations in part 2 of the study. Serum cobalamin concentrations, from samples submitted to a commercial laboratory, were assigned to five age groups: <1 year=cats under 1 year of age; 1–5 years=cats between 1 and 5 years of age; 6–10 years=cats between 6 and 10 years of age; 11–15 years=cats between 11 and 15 years of age; and >15 years=cats older than 15 years of age. Horizontal bars denote median values; boxes contain all results between the first and third quartiles; the upper whisker extends to Q3+1.5[Q3−Q1]); the lower whisker extends to Q1−1.5(Q3−Q1); asterisks represent outliers. Groups with different letters are significantly different from one another (at P<0.05).