We found considerable differences in reproducibility of different GFR measurements. These findings should be taken into account not only in practice but also in future studies involving GFR measurement.

The pharmacokinetics of marbofloxacin was studied in eight healthy female Beagle dogs before and after moderate renal impairment was induced experimentally. A single intravenous (i.v.) administration and repeated administration for 8 days (2 mg/kg, once-a-day) of marbofloxacin were studied. Renal impairment was induced by a right kidney nephrectomy and electrocoagulation of the left kidney. An increase (P < 0.001) in the plasma concentrations of urea (from 3.8+/-0.7 to 9.8+/-2.1 mmol/L) and creatinine (from 78.8+/-3.4 to 145.8+/-22.3 micromol/L), and a significant decrease (2.9+/-0.3 vs 1.5+/-0.2 mL/kg/min) (P < 0.001) in glomerular filtration rate were observed in the renal-impaired dogs. The clearance of marbofloxacin was slightly decreased after the induction of renal failure (1.6+/-0.2 to 1.4+/-0.1 mL/kg/min) (P < 0.05), but no significant variation of volume of distribution at steady state (Vss) and mean residence time (MRT) was observed after intravenous administration of marbofloxacin (P > 0.05). Following oral administration of marbofloxacin, an increase in total area under the concentration time curve (AUC) was observed after renal failure (from 10372+/-1710 to 11459+/-1119 mg x min/L) (P < 0.05), but indices of accumulation were not modified. An increase (P < 0.01) in the AUC of N-oxide-marbofloxacin was observed after surgery. In conclusion, renal impairment has no biologically relevant influence on marbofloxacin disposition and there is no need for dosage adjustment of marbofloxacin in dogs with mild renal impairment.

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Background: Kinetic assessment of urea, the main end product of protein metabolism, could serve to assess protein catabolism in dogs with chronic kidney disease (CKD). Protein malnutrition and catabolism are poorly documented in CKD and they often are neglected clinically because of a lack of appropriate evaluation tools.Hypothesis: Generation and excretion of urea are altered in dogs with CKD. Animals: Nine dogs with spontaneous CKD (IRIS stages 2-4) and 5 healthy research dogs. Methods: Endogenous renal clearance (Cl renal ) of urea and creatinine was measured first. Exogenous plasma clearance (Cl plasma , total body clearance) of the 2 markers then was determined by an IV infusion of urea (250-1,000 mg/kg over 20 minutes) and an IV bolus of creatinine (40 mg/kg). Extrarenal clearance (Cl extra ) was defined as the difference between Cl plasma and Cl renal . Endogenous urea generation was computed assuming steady-state conditions.Results: Median Cl renal and Cl extra of urea were 2.17 and 0.21 mL/min/kg in healthy dogs and 0.37 and 0.28 mL/min/kg in CKD dogs. The proportion of urea cleared by extrarenal route was markedly higher in dogs with glomerular filtration rate o1 mL/kg/min than in normal dogs, reaching up to 85% of the total clearance. A comparable pattern was observed for creatinine excretion, except in 1 dog, Cl extra remained o20% of Cl plasma .Conclusion: Extrarenal pathways of urea excretion are predominant in dogs with advanced CKD and justify exploring adjunctive therapies based on enteric nitrogen excretion in dogs. A trend toward increased urea generation may indicate increased catabolism in advanced CKD.