Factors associated with clinical remission in cats with diabetes mellitus

Abstract

Type 2 diabetes mellitus is a common endocrine disease in cats. The aim of this study was to investigate factors that are associated with clinical remission in diabetic cats, and those that might influence survival time. Medical records of 29 cats with diabetes mellitus were evaluated retrospectively. Data collected from each record included breed, age, and sex, types of diet before and after admission, degree of weight loss, duration of clinical signs before admission, elevation of alanine aminotransferase activity and ketonuria at the time of admission, concurrent pancreatitis or renal failure, glipizide administration, insulin supplement, and survival time. The diet after establishing diagnosis (restriction to non-carbohydrate canned food) was the only factor that was significantly associated with achieving clinical remission (P < 0.001). Survival time of cats was positively associated (P = 0.004) with clinical remission status and the type of diet after admission (P = 0.04) and negatively associated with the presence of chronic renal failure (P = 0.04). This was the first report of feline diabetes mellitus from Taiwan. Carbohydrate, dietary management, renal failure, diabetic cats, survivalDiabetes mellitus (DM) is a common endocrine disease in cats. This condition is characterized by hyperglycaemia, which results from an absolute or relative deficiency of insulin. Feline type 2 DM is associated with inadequate insulin secretion and concurrent conditions that induce insulin resistance or diabetogenic drugs that are associated with the development of DM (Zini et al. 2010). Clinical remission of this condition can be achieved by improving the residual β-cell function and restoring euglycaemia, for example, good glycaemic control during the early stage of the disease (Roomp and Rand 2009).Researchers have investigated the predictors of clinical remission in cats with diabetes mellitus, including age, serum cholesterol concentrations, strict glycaemic control, and the method of insulin replacement (Marshall et al. 2009;Zini et al. 2010). However, predictors of survival in cats with diabetes mellitus were not fully explored.The aim of this study was to investigate factors that are associated with clinical remission in cats with diabetes mellitus, and those that might influence the survival time. Materials and Methods Case selectionThe medical records of cats in which DM was diagnosed at the Azu Clinic for Animals, Taipei city, Taiwan, between 1999 and 2011 were reviewed retrospectively. The inclusion criteria for cats with DM in this survey were the presence of persistent hyperglycaemia (>16.7 mmol/l) and presence of glycosuria in at least 2 separate urine samples for a period longer than 2 weeks, and the presence of clinical signs consistent with DM. Criteria for the achievement of clinical remission was normoglycaemia (< 8.3 mmol/l) that was maintained without insulin for at least 4 weeks.Twenty-nine cats fulfilled the inclusion criteria, there were 18 domestic short-hairs (DSH), 10 Persians, and 1 dome...