Validation of a reference interval for symmetric dimethylarginine in healthy goats and its comparison to values in goats with obstructive urolithiasis
Validation of a reference interval for symmetric dimethylarginine in healthy goats and its comparison to values in goats with obstructive urolithiasis
Open access
In our edition of: Oct 2024
In our categories of: farm animals
our summary:
Camacho, B.E. et al. (2024) Validation of a reference interval for symmetric dimethylarginine in healthy goats and its comparison to values in goats with obstructive urolithiasis. Journal of Veterinary Internal Medicine, 38 (5), pp. 2807-2813.
The aim of this study was to establish a symmetric dimethylarginine (SDMA) reference interval (RI) in healthy adult goats. The authors hypothesised that the RI for SDMA in healthy adult goats would be similar to that of other adult species. A secondary aim of the study was to describe SDMA concentrations in goats with obstructive urolithiasis (OU) and to compare those values to creatinine, blood urea nitrogen, magnesium, or potassium to determine whether SDMA can be used to assess the renal function of goats with OU before surgery.
Fifty-nine apparently healthy adult goats, from either client owned herds or the teaching unit of a university in the United States, were enrolled in the study to establish the SDMA RI. Thirteen goats that had been admitted to the university hospital with a clinical diagnosis of OU and planned surgery to treat the OU were also enrolled. For validation of the developed RI 20 goats from a different university herd were enrolled.
Samples for all enrolled cases were collected and analysed for SDMA using a single immunoassay. Goats with OU had samples collected at presentation (0 hour), and 24, 48 and 72 hours after presentation. A full biochemistry analysis of these samples was undertaken in addition to the SDMA analysis.
The validated RI for healthy adult goats was 8.03 μg/dL to 25.93 μg/dL. In the goats with OU there was no statistically significant correlation between serum creatinine and SDMA, or magnesium and SDMA, at the four timepoints. There was a moderate positive correlation between blood urea nitrogen and SDMA at 0 hour and a strong positive correlation at 72 hours. A moderate positive correlation existed between potassium and SDMA at 0 hour.
Limitations of the study include difference in breed and male/female representation between the RI groups and the OU group. That the blood samples for RI establishment were not repeated and that a single immunoassay was used for the SDMA analysis. There was no attempt to characterise changes in SDMA during hospitalisation.
This study establishes a reference for SDMA in healthy adult goats which is higher than in other large animal species. It also provides evidence that SDMA is not useful in assessing the renal function of goats with OU before surgery, and further research is needed into the effect of breed, age, and disease state on SDMA values in goats.
Although SDMA can be measured in goats it does not serve as a tool for assessing the true renal function of goats with OU.
The following may also be of interest:
Hardy, L. (2023) Is symmetric dimethylarginine superior to creatinine for assessing glomerular filtration rate for cats with kidney disease? Veterinary Evidence, 8 (4). https://doi.org/10.18849/ve.v8i4.661
inFOCUS: A single-cohort retrospective analysis of factors associated with morbidity and mortality in 193 anesthetized domestic goats [RCVS Knowledge] [online] Available from: https://infocus.rcvsknowledge.org/a-single-cohort-retrospective-analysis-of-factors-associated-with-morbidity-and-mortality-in-193-anesthetized-domestic-goats/ [Accessed 18 October 2024]
Claiming CPD for reading inFOCUS articles
Reading and reflecting on articles can count towards your CPD, and we have a template to help you with the process.
Image copyright attribute: rusak / 123RF Stock Photo
Leave a Reply
Want to join the discussion?Feel free to contribute!