Determining which stage of chronic kidney disease your cat is in is important to be able to recommend the appropriate treatment to increase quality of life and longevity.
A best practice is to have your cat fasted at the time of blood draw for these numbers, and to confirm on at least two occasions. Ideally the cat is hydrated at the time of the draw.
*Reference ranges pulled from the IRIS 2023 Staging Guidelines
There is not a lot of concrete evidence, but recent guidance suggests SDMA is a more sensitive indicator of early stage CKD. There might be scenarios where SDMA is elevated but kidney filtering abilities are not necessarily reduced. There is limited information about certain breeds being susceptible to higher SDMA or creatinine without reduced kidney function.
Once you understand where you’re at with creatinine/SDMA, understanding proteinuria is next. Protein in the urine can increase the rate at which the kidney disease progresses and alter the treatment plan recommended by your vet. We’ll look at the urine protein to creatinine ratio (UP/C) values below for substaging.
*2023 IRIS Staging Guidelines
A similar story is the case with blood pressure. These readings should be taken over a duration of time as opposed to looking just a one reading snapshot.
*2023 IRIS Staging Guidelines
Don't panic. There are steps you can take at each stage to help your cat.
Sources:
IRIS Staging of CKD PDF - 2023
A best practice is to have your cat fasted at the time of blood draw for these numbers, and to confirm on at least two occasions. Ideally the cat is hydrated at the time of the draw.
*Reference ranges pulled from the IRIS 2023 Staging Guidelines
There is not a lot of concrete evidence, but recent guidance suggests SDMA is a more sensitive indicator of early stage CKD. There might be scenarios where SDMA is elevated but kidney filtering abilities are not necessarily reduced. There is limited information about certain breeds being susceptible to higher SDMA or creatinine without reduced kidney function.
Once you understand where you’re at with creatinine/SDMA, understanding proteinuria is next. Protein in the urine can increase the rate at which the kidney disease progresses and alter the treatment plan recommended by your vet. We’ll look at the urine protein to creatinine ratio (UP/C) values below for substaging.
*2023 IRIS Staging Guidelines
A similar story is the case with blood pressure. These readings should be taken over a duration of time as opposed to looking just a one reading snapshot.
*2023 IRIS Staging Guidelines
Don't panic. There are steps you can take at each stage to help your cat.
Sources:
IRIS Staging of CKD PDF - 2023