Establishment of an Inferred Reference Range for Blood Ammonia in Dogs and Cats Using a Point-of-Care Assay
Point-of-care (POC) tests for blood ammonia (BA) measurement have not been well evaluated in veterinary species. This cross-sectional study sought to establish an inferred reference interval for BA using a POC analyser in dogs and cats. Blood ammonia was measured in 175 dogs and 63 cats for which re...
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MDPI AG
2025-06-01
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| author | Giulia Specchia Emily Hannah Doran Seidel Charlotte Dye |
| author_facet | Giulia Specchia Emily Hannah Doran Seidel Charlotte Dye |
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| description | Point-of-care (POC) tests for blood ammonia (BA) measurement have not been well evaluated in veterinary species. This cross-sectional study sought to establish an inferred reference interval for BA using a POC analyser in dogs and cats. Blood ammonia was measured in 175 dogs and 63 cats for which relevant clinical history and laboratory data was available. Reference values were inferred based on comparisons between patients with and without disease pathologies reported to cause BA elevation. Descriptive statistics, Pearson Chi<sup>2</sup>, and Mann–Whitney U testing were used to assess for associations between clinical parameters and BA concentration. Seventy-one percent (124/175) of dogs and forty-six percent (29/63) of cats had undetectable BA. Following the exclusion of dogs with potential causes of hyperammonaemia, all remaining dogs had BA < 30 µg/dL. With one exception, all dogs with BA > 30 µg/dL had liver disease. All dogs with a clinical suspicion of hepatic encephalopathy (HE) had BA > 40 µg/dL. Following the exclusion of cats with potential causes of hyperammonaemia, all remaining cats had BA < 25 µg/dL. Only 50% of cats with BA > 25 µg/dL had liver disease. All cats with a clinical suspicion of HE had BA > 30 µg/dL. Based on this study population, BA < 30 µg/dL and <25 µg/dL should be considered normal in dogs and cats, respectively. Additionally, dogs with BA > 30 µg/dL are likely to have liver disease, while cats with BA > 25 µg/dL appear to exhibit a wider variety of disease pathologies. |
| format | Article |
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| institution | Kabale University |
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| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-06-01 |
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| spelling | doaj-art-e8844d2a45624e1697f742ecac76ec672025-08-20T03:29:38ZengMDPI AGVeterinary Sciences2306-73812025-06-0112659610.3390/vetsci12060596Establishment of an Inferred Reference Range for Blood Ammonia in Dogs and Cats Using a Point-of-Care AssayGiulia Specchia0Emily Hannah Doran Seidel1Charlotte Dye2Pride Veterinary Referrals, IVC Evidensia, Riverside Rd, Derby DE24 8HX, UKPride Veterinary Referrals, IVC Evidensia, Riverside Rd, Derby DE24 8HX, UKPride Veterinary Referrals, IVC Evidensia, Riverside Rd, Derby DE24 8HX, UKPoint-of-care (POC) tests for blood ammonia (BA) measurement have not been well evaluated in veterinary species. This cross-sectional study sought to establish an inferred reference interval for BA using a POC analyser in dogs and cats. Blood ammonia was measured in 175 dogs and 63 cats for which relevant clinical history and laboratory data was available. Reference values were inferred based on comparisons between patients with and without disease pathologies reported to cause BA elevation. Descriptive statistics, Pearson Chi<sup>2</sup>, and Mann–Whitney U testing were used to assess for associations between clinical parameters and BA concentration. Seventy-one percent (124/175) of dogs and forty-six percent (29/63) of cats had undetectable BA. Following the exclusion of dogs with potential causes of hyperammonaemia, all remaining dogs had BA < 30 µg/dL. With one exception, all dogs with BA > 30 µg/dL had liver disease. All dogs with a clinical suspicion of hepatic encephalopathy (HE) had BA > 40 µg/dL. Following the exclusion of cats with potential causes of hyperammonaemia, all remaining cats had BA < 25 µg/dL. Only 50% of cats with BA > 25 µg/dL had liver disease. All cats with a clinical suspicion of HE had BA > 30 µg/dL. Based on this study population, BA < 30 µg/dL and <25 µg/dL should be considered normal in dogs and cats, respectively. Additionally, dogs with BA > 30 µg/dL are likely to have liver disease, while cats with BA > 25 µg/dL appear to exhibit a wider variety of disease pathologies.https://www.mdpi.com/2306-7381/12/6/596ammoniapoint-of-carehepatic encephalopathyreference rangeinternal medicineemergency |
| spellingShingle | Giulia Specchia Emily Hannah Doran Seidel Charlotte Dye Establishment of an Inferred Reference Range for Blood Ammonia in Dogs and Cats Using a Point-of-Care Assay Veterinary Sciences ammonia point-of-care hepatic encephalopathy reference range internal medicine emergency |
| title | Establishment of an Inferred Reference Range for Blood Ammonia in Dogs and Cats Using a Point-of-Care Assay |
| title_full | Establishment of an Inferred Reference Range for Blood Ammonia in Dogs and Cats Using a Point-of-Care Assay |
| title_fullStr | Establishment of an Inferred Reference Range for Blood Ammonia in Dogs and Cats Using a Point-of-Care Assay |
| title_full_unstemmed | Establishment of an Inferred Reference Range for Blood Ammonia in Dogs and Cats Using a Point-of-Care Assay |
| title_short | Establishment of an Inferred Reference Range for Blood Ammonia in Dogs and Cats Using a Point-of-Care Assay |
| title_sort | establishment of an inferred reference range for blood ammonia in dogs and cats using a point of care assay |
| topic | ammonia point-of-care hepatic encephalopathy reference range internal medicine emergency |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2306-7381/12/6/596 |
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