Surgical treatment of CPSS in dogs resulted in significantly improved survival rate and lower frequency of ongoing clinical signs, compared with medical management. Age at diagnosis did not affect survival rate and should not influence treatment choice.

BackgroundMeasurement of basal serum or plasma cortisol concentration is used as a screening test for hypoadrenocorticism in dogs, but is not well characterized.ObjectivesTo evaluate the sensitivity and specificity of basal serum cortisol to detect hypoadrenocorticism in a population of dogs with a clinical suspicion of hypoadrenocorticism.AnimalsFour hundred and fifty dogs with nonadrenal gland illness and 14 dogs with naturally occurring hypoadrenocorticism were included.MethodsRetrospective case‐control study. The records of all dogs having had an ACTH stimulation test performed between January 2005 and September 2011 at the University of Bristol were reviewed. Dogs were included if the test was performed as a screening for hypoadrenocorticism. The sensitivity and specificity of basal serum cortisol concentration to detect dogs with hypoadrenocorticism were calculated using 2 cut‐offs and compared to the gold standard ACTH stimulation test.ResultsUsing a cut‐off of ≤2 μg/dL (≤55 nmol/L), the sensitivity and specificity of basal cortisol to detect hypoadrenocorticism were 100% and 63.3%, respectively, whereas for a cut‐off of ≤1 μg/dL (≤28 nmol/L), the sensitivity and specificity were 85.7% and 91.8%, respectively.Conclusions and Clinical ImportanceMeasurement of basal serum cortisol is useful as a screening test for hypoadrenocorticism in dogs using a cut‐off of ≤2 μg/dL (≤55 nmol/L), and the disease is unlikely with a basal serum cortisol >2 μg/dL (>55 nmol/L). A basal serum cortisol ≤2 μg/dL (≤55 nmol/L) cannot be used to diagnose hypoadrenocorticism, and an ACTH stimulation test should be performed in these cases.

Objectives: To evaluate whether a hand-held creatinine analyser (StatSensor ® Xpress; SSXp), available for human patients, can be used to reliably measure creatinine in cats.Methods: Analytical performance was evaluated by determining within-run and between-run coefficient of variation (CV, %), total error observed (TEobs, %) and sigma metrics. 50 client-owned cats presenting for investigation of clinical disease had creatinine measured simultaneously, using SSXp (whole blood and plasma) and a reference instrument (Konelab, serum); 48 paired samples were included in the study. Creatinine correlation between methodologies (SSXp vs Konelab) and sample types (SSXpwhole blood vs SSXpplasma) was assessed by Spearman's correlation coefficient and agreement was determined using Bland-Altman difference plots. Each creatinine value was assigned an IRIS stage (1-4); correlation and agreement between Konelab and SSXp IRIS stages was evaluated. Conclusions and relevance:Analytical performance of the SSXp in feline patients is not considered acceptable. The SSXp exhibited high to very-high correlation compared to reference methodology but the two instruments cannot be used interchangeably. Improvements in SSXp analytical performance are needed before its use can be recommended in feline clinical practice.

Background Ultrasonographic gastrointestinal wall changes in dogs with acute pancreatitis (AP) are not well characterized in the literature. No detailed studies have described their prevalence, characteristics, distribution, or clinical relevance. Hypothesis/Objectives Describe the prevalence of ultrasonographic gastrointestinal wall changes in a population of dogs with AP and evaluate for associations between the presence of gastrointestinal wall changes and clinical or clinicopathological variables. Animals Referral population of 66 client‐owned dogs with AP. Methods Retrospective search of clinical records to identify dogs with AP. Clinical variables, clinicopathological variables and ultrasonographic findings were reported using descriptive statistics. A binary logistic regression model was used to evaluate for associations between the presence of gastrointestinal wall changes and clinical or clinicopathological variables. Results Sixty‐six dogs were included. Forty‐seven percent of dogs (95% confidence interval [CI], 35.0%‐59.0%; n = 31) with AP had ultrasonographic gastrointestinal wall changes. Gastrointestinal wall changes were most common in the duodenum and identified in 71% (n = 22) of affected dogs. Of dogs with gastrointestinal wall changes, 74.2% (n = 23) had wall thickening, 61.3% (n = 19) had abnormal wall layering, and 35.5% (n = 11) had wall corrugation. In the multivariable model, only heart rate remained an independent predictor of ultrasonographic gastrointestinal wall changes (P = .02). Conclusions and Clinical Importance Ultrasonographic gastrointestinal wall changes in this population of dogs with AP were common. Increased heart rate was the only independent predictor of gastrointestinal wall changes, which might imply more severe disease. Additional studies are required to elucidate whether ultrasonographic gastrointestinal wall changes reflect disease severity in AP.

Coughing is a common presenting sign in dogs, less so in cats, and may be a manifestation of a wide range of disorders, from acute self-limiting disease that does not require specific diagnosis and treatment, through to acute and chronic diseases of varying severity that require appropriate investigation to guide optimal management and outcome. This article reviews the diagnostic approach to coughing.