Platelet abnormalities and platelet-to-lymphocyte ratios in canine immunosuppressant-responsive and non-responsive enteropathy: A retrospective study in 41 dogs

Diagnostic benefits of platelet-to-lymphocyte, neutrophil-to-lymphocyte, and albumin-to-globulin ratios in dogs with nasal cavity diseases

BACKGROUND

A multimodal approach for diagnostic tests under anesthesia is required to diagnose nasal cavity pathology (NP) reliably in dogs. Blood test results may provide clues to the suspected NP.

METHODS

This prospective blinded study assessed 72 dogs with chronic nasal discharge due to NPs, and 10 healthy dogs as the control group (CG). NPs were diagnosed using whole-body computed tomography (CT), upper airway endoscopy, examination of nasal mucosal swabs by bacterial and fungal culture, and histopathological examination of nasal mucosa biopsies. The exclusion criteria were the presence of any additional diseases or corticosteroid pre-treatment. In consideration of these exclusion criteria, 55 dogs entered the study. Dogs were classified into benign (benign tumors, idiopathic rhinitis (IR), and others) and malignant (carcinomas and sarcomas) NP groups. Blood count and blood chemistry tests were performed. The neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio (NLR), platelet-to-lymphocyte ratio (PLR), and albumin-to-globulin ratio (AGR) were calculated and compared.

RESULTS

25 dogs with malignant NP (13 and 12 with carcinomas and sarcomas, respectively) and 30 dogs with benign NP (seven with benign tumors,13 with IR, and 10 others) were included. In general, in dogs with NP there were only slight abnormalities in complete blood count. However, PLR was significantly higher in dogs with malignant NP (carcinoma and sarcoma) than in those with benign NP and in the CG. Compared with the CG, the NLR was significantly increased in all dogs with NP, and the AGR was mild but significantly lower, except in dogs with sarcomas and benign tumors.

CONCLUSIONS

In dogs with nasal disease alone, there are usually no marked abnormalities in blood count. However, while mildly increased NLR and decreased AGR can be observed in almost all NPs, an increased PLR may indicate a malignant NP and can be used as an additional screening tool in dogs with nasal discharge due to nasal cavity pathology.

Retrospective evaluation of hematological ratios in canine parvovirosis: 401 cases

BACKGROUND

The utility of neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio (NLR), platelet to-lymphocyte ratio (PLR) and monocyte-to-lymphocyte ratio (MLR) as prognostic indicators has not been investigated in canine parvovirosis (CPV).

HYPOTHESIS

To evaluate whether these hematological ratios obtained at hospital admission in CPV are associated with outcome or duration of hospitalization.

ANIMALS

Four hundred one client-owned dogs presented with CPV. Methods-Retrospective multicenter cohort study. Medical records were reviewed to identify dogs with CPV. Data regarding signalment, complete blood count at admission, duration of hospitalization and outcome were collected.

RESULTS

Of the 401 dogs included in the study, 336 (83.8%) survived to discharge. The median (25th and 75th percentiles) PLR in nonsurvivors (336.56 [159.84-635.77]) was significantly higher than in survivors (217.65 [117.67-389.65]) (P = .003). The area under the receiver-operating characteristic curve for nonsurvival was 0.615 (95% CI [0.593-0.691], P = .003). A cut off of 700 showed a 21.5% sensitivity and 90% specificity for nonsurvival. No association was observed between hospitalization duration and either hematological ratios or total WBC counts. The median (25th and 75th percentiles) lymphocyte count was below reference interval in all dogs and was significantly lower in the dogs which died (0.82 × 109 /L [0.5-1.87]) than in survivors (1.27 × 109 /L [0.73-2.22]) (P = .005). The median (25th and 75th percentiles) monocyte count however was lower in survivors (0.38 × 109 /L [0.29-1.59]), than in nonsurvivors (0.73 × 109 /L [0.1-2]) (P = .002).

CONCLUSIONS

Evaluation of PLR at hospital admission might be a useful marker of disease severity and could have prognostic value in dogs with CPV.

Prognostic Efficacy of Complete Blood Count Indices for Assessing the Presence and the Progression of Myxomatous Mitral Valve Disease in Dogs

This study investigated the complete blood count (CBC) indices, including neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio (NLR), monocyte-to-lymphocyte ratio (MLR), and platelet-to-lymphocyte ratio (PLR) in dogs with myxomatous mitral valve disease (MMVD) and analyzed their correlation with conventional biomarkers, as well as the effect of CBC indices on survival time in dogs with MMVD. Medical records of 75 healthy controls and 249 dogs with MMVD from March 2015 to October 2022 were analyzed. The NLR, MLR, and PLR were calculated by dividing the absolute counts of the CBC parameters. Dogs with MMVD had significantly higher NLR, MLR, and PLR than healthy dogs (all p < 0.0001), especially those in the symptomatic MMVD group with pulmonary edema (p < 0.0001, p = 0.0002, and p = 0.0387, respectively). The NLR and MLR were significantly correlated with N-terminal pro-B type natriuretic peptide levels (both p < 0.0001). The CBC indices showed potential as biomarkers for detecting the presence of MMVD (all p < 0.0001) and severity of MMVD (p < 0.0001, p < 0.0001, and p = 0.006, respectively) using receiver operating characteristic curve analysis. The negative effects of increased NLR, MLR, and PLR on survival were confirmed using Kaplan-Meier curve analysis. In conclusion, NLR, MLR, and PLR could be cost-effective and readily available potential diagnostic and prognostic biomarkers for MMVD in dogs.

Complete Blood Count-Derived Inflammatory Markers Changes in Dogs with Chronic Inflammatory Enteropathy Treated with Adipose-Derived Mesenchymal Stem Cells

Adipose-derived mesenchymal stem cells (Ad-MSCs) exhibit anti-inflammatory and immunomodulatory activities. The neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio (NLR), platelet-to-lymphocyte ratio (PLR), and systemic immune-inflammation index (SII) have been reported as novel biomarkers of the inflammatory state; however, they have never been examined in dogs with chronic inflammatory enteropathy (CIE) treated with Ad-MSCs. This study aimed to compare the clinical evolution and the changes in the NLR, PLR, and SII in dogs with CIE before and after cell therapy. Sixteen dogs with CIE were administered a single intravenous dose of Ad-MSCs. The canine chronic enteropathy clinical activity index (CCECAI), NLR, PLR, and SII were assessed before treatment (T0) and at 2 (T2) and 9 (T9) months post-treatment and compared over time and with the reference values obtained from a group of healthy dogs. NLR, PLR, and SII were significantly increased at T0 compared to the reference values, decreasing significantly over time. At T9, the NLR and SII did not differ from the reference values, but PLR remained above the reference values. A correlation was observed between CCECAI and the three markers. These findings show that the clinical improvement of dogs with CIE treated with Ad-MSCs is accompanied by a normalization of the inflammatory status.

Expression of genes encoding inflammasome sensor subunits in the duodenal and colonic mucosae of dogs with chronic enteropathy

Inflammasomes play a pivotal role in gastrointestinal homeostasis and inflammation. However, it remains elusive whether the nucleotide-binding oligomerization domain-like receptor (NLR) family inflammasomes, such as NLR family pyrin domain-containing (NLRP) 3, NLRP6, and NLRP12, are involved in the pathogenesis of canine chronic enteropathy (CE), which includes antibiotic-responsive enteropathy (ARE), food-responsive enteropathy (FRE), immunosuppressant-responsive enteropathy (IRE), and non-responsive enteropathy (NRE). Thus, we measured mRNA expression of NLRP3, NLRP6, and NLRP12 in the intestinal mucosa of 35 dogs with CE (ARE, four dogs; FRE, 11 dogs; IRE and NRE, 20 dogs) and seven healthy dogs. As per real-time PCR analysis, significant increases in mRNA expression of NLRP3 and NLRP12 were noted in the colonic but not in the duodenal mucosa of dogs with FRE compared to healthy dogs. These findings suggested that the NLRP3 and NLRP12 inflammasomes might contribute to the development of colitis in dogs with FRE.