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. 2023 Nov;25(11):1098612X231207492.
doi: 10.1177/1098612X231207492.

Determination of age-specific reference intervals for selected serum and urinary biomarkers in elderly cats

Femke Mortier  1 , Robby van Leeuwenberg  1 , Sylvie Daminet  1 , Dominique Paepe  1
Affiliations

Determination of age-specific reference intervals for selected serum and urinary biomarkers in elderly cats

Femke Mortier et al. J Feline Med Surg. 2023 Nov.

Abstract

Objectives: Annual health screening is recommended in elderly cats to allow the early detection of conditions such as chronic kidney disease (CKD) and hyperthyroidism. Nevertheless, age-specific reference intervals (RIs) for renal and thyroid parameters in this population are lacking. The aim of this study was to determine age-specific RIs for selected serum and urine biomarkers related to CKD and hyperthyroidism, namely serum creatinine (sCr), symmetric dimethylarginine (SDMA), phosphate (P), total calcium (tCa), total thyroxine (TT4), urinary protein:creatinine ratio (UPC) and urine specific gravity (USG). These RIs were established for elderly cats (aged ⩾7 years) in general, as well as for mature adult cats (aged 7-10 years) and senior cats (aged >10 years) separately.

Methods: A prospective study was conducted on client-owned cats aged ⩾7 years and considered healthy by their owners. The cats were screened to rule out metabolic and systemic diseases by means of a thorough history, complete physical examination, blood examination and urinalysis. The data from 206 healthy elderly cats (134 mature adult and 72 senior cats) were included. Age-appropriate RIs were determined following the guidelines of the American Society of Veterinary Clinical Pathology and compared with existing laboratory RIs.

Results: Clinically relevant differences between the age-specific RI and the laboratory RI were found for several variables. Compared with the laboratory RI, the upper limit of the RI for cats aged ⩾7 years was lower for sCr, TT4 and P, and higher for SDMA. The lower limit of the age-appropriate RI was lower for USG. The new RI was almost identical to the existing laboratory RI for tCa and UPC.

Conclusions and relevance: Using age-specific RIs for renal and thyroid biomarkers in mature adult and senior cats has important clinical consequences for the interpretation of health screening results in elderly cats. This confirms the need to adapt laboratory RIs to the specific animal population for which the RI will be used.

Keywords: Mature adult; geriatric; health screening; kidney; senior; thyroid.

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Conflict of interest statement

Conflict of interestThe authors declared no potential conflicts of interest with respect to the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Histogram for serum creatinine results of all 206 healthy elderly cats (aged ⩾7 years). The upper and lower limits of the 95% reference interval are established by excluding the 2.5% highest (n = 5) and 2.5% lowest (n = 5) results
Figure 2
Figure 2
Histogram for serum symmetric dimethylarginine (SDMA) results of all 206 healthy elderly cats (aged ⩾7 years). The upper and lower limits of the 95% reference interval are established by excluding the 2.5% highest (n = 5) and 2.5% lowest (n = 5) results
Figure 3
Figure 3
Histogram for serum total thyroxine (TT4) results of all 206 healthy elderly cats (aged ⩾7 years). The upper and lower limits of the 95% reference interval are established by excluding the 2.5% highest (n = 5) and 2.5% lowest (n = 5) results
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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