Ionised hypercalcaemia in a cat with extrahepatic biliary tract obstruction secondary to a bile duct vegetal foreign body.

Case Summary: A 10-year-old neutered female domestic shorthair cat was presented to our hospital with a 2-day history of anorexia, vomiting and lethargy. The biochemistry panel revealed increased hepatic enzyme activity and serum amyloid A concentration. Haematological values were within reference intervals.

Usefulness of serum amyloid A for the diagnosis of pyelonephritis in cats: A prospective evaluation.

Background: The diagnosis of pyelonephritis in cats is challenging and development of a noninvasive and accurate biomarker is needed.

Hypotheses: Serum amyloid A (SAA) is increased in cats with pyelonephritis, but not in cats with other urinary tract diseases.

Animals: A cohort of 125 cats (149 observations).

Description of serum symmetric dimethylarginine concentration and of urinary SDS-AGE pattern in dogs with ACTH dependent hyperadrenocorticism.

Serum symmetric dimethylarginine (SDMA) and patterns of urinary protein separated by sodium dodecyl sulfate agarose gel electrophoresis (SDS-AGE) have not been investigated as biomarkers in dogs with ACTH-dependent hyperadrenocorticism (ADHAC). This exploratory prospective study aimed to evaluate SDMA, serum creatinine (sCR), and SDS-AGE in dogs with ADHAC with and without proteinuria (ADHAC-P and ADHAC-nP, respectively). Thirty-five pet dogs classified as ADHAC-P (n=16), ADHAC-nP (n=6) and healthy (n=13) were included.

Descriptive analysis and prognostic factors in cats with myeloma-related disorders: A multicenter retrospective study of 50 cases.

Background: Myeloma-related disorders (MRDs) are rare and poorly documented neoplasms of cats.

Hypothesis/objectives: To describe clinical, clinicopathologic, and imaging findings, response to treatment, and survival time and to identify factors associated with shorter outcomes in cats with MRD.

Animals: Fifty cats with a diagnosis of MRD.

Prevalence and clinical relevance of cholelithiasis in cats: A multicenter retrospective study of 98 cases.

Background: Cholelithiasis is an uncommon and mainly incidental finding in dogs; current literature on this topic is scarce in cats.

Hypothesis: Report prevalence, clinical presentation, management, and outcome of cholelithiasis in cats.

Animals: Ninety-eight cats with cholelithiasis.

Prospective evaluation of a telmisartan suppression test as a diagnostic tool for primary hyperaldosteronism in cats.

Background: In a previous study, telmisartan suppressed aldosterone secretion in healthy cats but not in cats with primary hyperaldosteronism (PHA).

Hypotheses: Telmisartan suppresses aldosterone secretion in middle-aged healthy cat and cats with diseases that may result in secondary hyperaldosteronism, but not in those with PHA.

Animals: Thirty-eight cats: 5 with PHA; 16 with chronic kidney disease (CKD), subclassified as hypertensive (CKD-H) or non-hypertensive (CKD-NH); 9 with hyperthyroidism (HTH); 2 with idiopathic systemic arterial hypertension (ISH); and 6 healthy middle-aged cats.

A case of feline gastrointestinal eosinophilic sclerosing fibroplasia associated with fungal colonisation: endoscopic features, treatment and follow-up.

Case Summary: A 5-year-old castrated male domestic shorthair cat presented with a 3-month history of weight loss, chronic diarrhoea and vomiting. Examination revealed a large proximal duodenal lesion eventually diagnosed as feline gastrointestinal eosinophilic sclerosing fibroplasia (FGESF) associated with fungal filaments. Histological examination was performed following endoscopic biopsy.

Evaluation of oral telmisartan administration as a suppression test for diagnosis of primary hyperaldosteronism in cats.

Background: Development of a telmisartan-based suppression test may facilitate the diagnosis of primary hyperaldosteronism (PHA) in cats, which remains difficult today.

Objectives: To develop a telmisartan suppression test (TST) that is safe, and able to suppress aldosterone secretion in healthy cats but not in cats with PHA.

Animals: Ten healthy cats and 6 cats with PHA.

Alendronate treatment in cats with persistent ionized hypercalcemia: A retrospective cohort study of 20 cases.

Background: Limited information is available concerning treatment of ionized hypercalcemia in cats.

Hypothesis/objectives: Describe clinical findings in a cohort of cats with persistent ionized hypercalcemia and evaluate long-term tolerance and efficacy of alendronate in these patients.

Animals: Twenty cats with persistent ionized hypercalcemia of undetermined origin, presented for routine or referral consultation at the teaching hospital of Maisons-Alfort (France).

Long-term follow-up of a juvenile simple renal cyst in a dog treated by laparoscopic deroofing, fulguration, and omentalization.

Case Description: A 10-month-old male crossbred dog presented with a 4-week history of polyuria and polydipsia and a 6-month history of vomiting.

Clinical Findings: Clinical examination revealed abdominal pain and right-sided nephromegaly. Biochemistry was within normal limits.

Endoscopic assessment of presumed acquired pyloric narrowing in cats: A retrospective study of 27 cases.

Acquired pyloric narrowing is a rare and poorly-documented condition in cats, but the endoscopic appearance of pyloric narrowing has never previously been reported. The objectives of this study were to describe the clinical, endoscopic and histological features in cats with gastrointestinal signs where the pylorus could not be passed during endoscopy, and to compare these data with a control group. Medical files of cats that underwent upper GI endoscopy by the same operator between 2006 and 2015 were reviewed.

Use of serum biomarkers in staging of canine hepatic fibrosis.

Accurate staging of hepatic fibrosis (HF) is important for treatment and prognosis of canine chronic hepatitis. HF scores are used in human medicine to indirectly stage and monitor HF, decreasing the need for liver biopsy. We developed a canine HF score to screen for moderate or greater HF.

Development and validation of a novel clinical scoring system for short-term prediction of death in dogs with acute pancreatitis.

Background: Acute pancreatitis (AP) is associated with a high death rate in dogs, but accurate predictors of early death are still lacking.

Objectives: To develop a scoring system for prediction of short-term case fatality in dogs with AP.

Animals: One hundred sixty-nine dogs with AP including 138 dogs in the training cohort and 31 dogs in the validation cohort.

Frequency of bacteriuria in dogs with chronic kidney disease: A retrospective study of 201 cases.

Background: Studies have shown an increased prevalence of positive urine culture (PUC) in cats with chronic kidney disease (CKD); no information is available in dogs.

Objectives: To document the PUC frequency in a cohort of dogs with CKD, determine risk factors for PUC, and identify associations between clinicopathologic data and PUC.

Animals: Two hundred one client-owned dogs with CKD.

Clinical description of Corynebacterium urealyticum urinary tract infections in 11 dogs and 10 cats.

Objectives: To examine the clinical signs, laboratory findings, possible predisposing factors, antimicrobial sensitivity and outcomes of dogs and cats diagnosed with urinary tract infection caused by Corynebacterium urealyticum.

Materials And Methods: Retrospective, observational study of dogs and cats that were diagnosed with urinary tract infection caused by C. urealyticum.

The myeloid derived suppressor cells: Who are they? Can they be used as a diagnostic tool to investigate metastasis in veterinary medicine?

Myeloid-derived suppressor cells (MDSCs) are key players in immunosuppression mechanisms that lead to tumor escape and metastasis formation. Studies on these cells in many cancer types using human patients and murine models, have greatly increased since their discovery in 1980s. MDSCs are now defined as different subpopulations with specific phenotypes in mice and humans with clear immunosuppressive capacities, which are summarized in this review.

An endoscopic method for semi-quantitatively measuring internal pyloric diameter in healthy cats: A prospective study of 24 cases.

The objectives of this study were to describe an endoscopic technique for semi-quantitative measurement of the internal pyloric diameter and apply this method to determine its typical size in a population of healthy cats. Twenty-four healthy adult cats, privately owned or originating from catteries, were prospectively recruited. Endoscopies were performed by the same investigator and cats with moderate to marked macroscopic inflammation were excluded.

Primary hypoaldosteronism in a dog with pituitary and adrenal T-cell lymphoma.

A 7-year-old mixed breed dog was presented with a 2-week history of vomiting, diarrhoea, weakness and loss of appetite. Initial laboratory tests revealed hyponatraemia and hyperkalaemia consistent with hypoadrenocorticism. Basal plasma cortisol and adrenocorticotropic hormone concentrations were not suggestive of primary hypoadrenocorticism but the aldosterone concentration was undetectable.

Feline low-grade alimentary lymphoma: an emerging entity and a potential animal model for human disease.

Background: Low-grade alimentary lymphoma (LGAL) is characterised by the infiltration of neoplastic T-lymphocytes, typically in the small intestine. The incidence of LGAL has increased over the last ten years and it is now the most frequent digestive neoplasia in cats and comprises 60 to 75% of gastrointestinal lymphoma cases. Given that LGAL shares common clinical, paraclinical and ultrasonographic features with inflammatory bowel diseases, establishing a diagnosis is challenging.

Proopiomelanocortin processing and prohormone convertase 1 level in dogs with pituitary corticotroph tumors.

Preliminary data suggest that prohormone convertase 1 (PC1/3) protein expression and proopiomelanocortin (POMC) processing are altered in large corticotroph tumors. The aim of this study was to characterize the levels of ACTH precursors and PC1/3 protein in small and large corticotroph tumors of dogs with Cushing's disease. Pituitary tumors of dogs with Cushing's disease were collected postmortem 30 min to 12h after natural death or euthanasia, and classified as small or large.

Dogs with macroadenomas have lower body temperature and heart rate than dogs with microadenomas.

Pituitary macroadenomas compress the hypothalamus, which partly regulates heart rate and body temperature. The aim of this study was to investigate whether heart rate and/or body temperature could aid in clinically differentiating dogs with macroadenomas from dogs with microadenomas (i.e.

The computed tomographic "tree-in-bud" pattern: Characterization and comparison with radiographic and clinical findings in 36 cats.

In humans, a CT "tree-in-bud" pattern has been described as a characteristic of centrilobular bronchiolar dilation, with bronchiolar plugging by mucus, pus, or fluid. Aims of this retrospective, descriptive, multi-center study were to characterize the CT appearance of a "tree-in-bud" pattern in a group of cats, and compare this pattern with radiographic and clinical findings. Databases from four hospitals were searched during the period of January 2012 to September 2015 and cats with thoracic radiographs, thoracic CT scans and CT reports describing findings consistent with a "tree-in-bud" pattern were included.