Urinary calcium in dogs: a validation study

• Grant number: 23/14190-8
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Scientific Initiation
• Start date: February 01, 2024
• End date: December 31, 2024
• Field of knowledge: Agronomical Sciences - Veterinary Medicine - Animal Clinics and Surgery
• Principal Investigator: Fernanda Chicharo Chacar
• Grantee: Matheus Pazini Leite
• Host Institution: Faculdade de Medicina Veterinária e Zootecnia (FMVZ). Universidade de São Paulo (USP). São Paulo , SP, Brazil

Abstract

Uroliths compound by calcium oxalate are more prevalent in clinical routine compared to other compositions. Although several mechanisms are involved in the formation of calcium oxalate urolithiasis, hypercalciuria is considered the main risk factor and, for this reason, some medications have been used to reduce the urinary excretion of calcium, such as thiazide diuretics and bisphosphonates. Therefore, measuring urinary calcium may be a relevant strategy in the management of patients with calcium oxalate urolithiasis, in order to monitor the urinary excretion of calcium and to determine the need for such medications. However, there is a lack of validation techniques for determining urinary calcium in dogs, which could be useful to enable its evaluation in veterinary clinical practice. The present study aims to validate the colorimetric method for measuring urinary calcium, using pooled sample containing equal volumes of several different urine specimens from dogs treated at the Veterinary Hospital of the University of São Paulo (HOVET-USP).