Name
Comparison of a point-of-care cholesterol/triglyceride meter with reference laboratory in rabbits
Description
Domestic rabbits (Oryctolagus cuniculus) are often presented for emergency veterinary care. A variety of bloodwork parameters have been shown to have prognostic relevance in rabbits, including glucose, sodium, urea, and lactate. Cholesterol and triglycerides may be very useful bloodwork parameters in assessing the severity of illness in rabbits. Rabbits with severe infection or sepsis, renal failure, and hepatopathy have increased risks of hypercholesteremia and hypertriglyceridemia. However, due to the time required for analysis of cholesterol and triglycerides at a reference laboratory, there may be a delay of hours or even days before results are obtained, which is not ideal for critically ill rabbits. Therefore, having a rapid, accurate test for cholesterol and triglyceride in rabbits would be enormously beneficial. This prospective agreement study was performed opportunistically on domestic rabbits presenting for either wellness care or work-up of clinical disease in which a plasma biochemical profile including cholesterol and triglycerides was performed. Client consent was obtained. Blood was collected routinely and placed in a heparin tube. A drop of heparinized whole blood was placed on the strip of the point-of-care analyzer (CardioChek PA) immediately after collection. The remainder of the sample was submitted for a plasma biochemical profile (Beckman Coulter AU680 Chemistry Analyzer). The study included 39 rabbits. The median cholesterol was 33 mg/dL on the laboratory analyzer; all samples had a cholesterol of <100 mg/dL (below reportable range) on the CardioChek PA. The median triglycerides were 85 mg/dL on the laboratory analyzer and 91 mg/dL on the CardioChek PA.
Session Type
Lecture (25 Min)