Is proteinuria a rare condition in healthy cats?
A study evaluated the urine protein-to-creatinine (UPC) values retrospectively in cats. The UPC ratio was evaluated in 112 owned cats, out of which 51 (45.5%) were considered healthy cats according to their owners and 61 (54.5%) sick cats, presenting systemic clinical signs suggestive of chronic kidney disease.
The study found that 54.5% of all cats included were borderline proteinuric or proteinuric, having increased UPC (UPC ≥ 0.2), with 35.7% from the sick group and 18.7% from the healthy group.
Increased UPC was also statistically associated with azotemia and isosthenuria in both sick and health-check groups of cats.
The study suggests that the measurement of UPC could be very useful in the detection and management of CKD in apparently healthy cats during a medical visit for annual health check irrespective of the age.
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