Background
Ammonia is produced and excreted by the kidney, contributing to systemic acid-base homeostasis through the production of bicarbonate. Disorders of acid-base balance can lead to many clinical problems and measuring ammonia excretion helps in determining if the kidneys are responding to acid-base challenges appropriately. Reference intervals are integral to clinical decision-making, and there is no current RI for the urine ammonia-to-creatinine ratio (UACR) in dogs.
Conclusions
Establishing an RI for UACR in healthy adult dogs will allow for further studies to determine if alterations are observed during specific disease states.
Methods
The study used adult, client-owned dogs that were presented to the University of Florida Primary Care and Dentistry service (n = 60). Physical examinations were performed and serum chemistry and urinalysis samples were obtained. Urine ammonia and creatinine concentrations were determined. Dogs were excluded if there were significant abnormalities in either their urinalysis or serum chemistry
Objective
This study aimed to generate an RI for the UACR in healthy adult dogs.
Results
The RIs for the UACR were 0.16-23.69 with 90% confidence intervals for the lower and upper limits of (0.13-1.17) and (20.50-23.75), respectively. No significant impact of age, sex, or weight was found. There was no discernable relationship between serum bicarbonate and UACR. Conclusions: Establishing an RI for UACR in healthy adult dogs will allow for further studies to determine if alterations are observed during specific disease states.