Rate and frequency of recurrence of uroliths after an initial ammonium urate, calcium oxalate, or struvite urolith in cats.
OBJECTIVE
To determine frequency of and interval until recurrence after initial ammonium urate, calcium oxalate, and struvite uroliths in cats and whether breed, age, or sex was associated with increased risk for urolith recurrence.


METHODS
Case-control study.


METHODS
4,435 cats with recurrent uroliths.


METHODS
To identify recurrence of uroliths in cats for which uroliths were submitted for analysis at the Minnesota Urolith Center in 1998, the facility's database was searched for urolith resubmissions from the same cats between 1998 and 2003. Risk factors and differences in mean interval until recurrence were assessed.


RESULTS
Of 221 cats with ammonium urate uroliths in 1998, 29 (13.1%) had a first and 9 (4.1%) had a second recurrence. Mean interval until recurrence was 22 and 43 months for the first and second recurrence, respectively. Of 2,393 cats with calcium oxalate uroliths in 1998, 169 (7.1%) had a first, 15 (0.6%) had a second, and 2 (0.1%) had a third recurrence. Mean interval until recurrence was 25, 38, and 48 months for the first, second, and third recurrence, respectively. Of 1,821 cats with struvite uroliths in 1998, 49 (2.7%) had a first and 3 (0.2%) had a second recurrence. Mean interval until recurrence was 29 months for first and 40 months for second recurrences.


CONCLUSIONS
These results provided insights into the frequency of urolith recurrence in cats. Because some uroliths associated with recurrent episodes probably were not submitted to our facility, our data likely represented an underestimation of the actual recurrence rate.
Albasan
Hasan
H
Department of Small Animal Clinical Sciences, College of Veterinary Medicine, University of Minnesota, Minnesota Urolith Center, Saint Paul, MN 55108, USA. alba0024@umn.edu
Osborne
Carl A
CA
Lulich
Jody P
JP
Lekcharoensuk
Chalermpol
C
Koehler
Lori A
LA
Ulrich
Lisa K
LK
Swanson
Laura L
LL
D000818:Animals; D002129:Calcium Oxalate / Q000737:chemistry*; D016022:Case-Control Studies; D002371:Cat Diseases / Q000473:pathology*; D002415:Cats; D017616:Magnesium Compounds / Q000737:chemistry*; D016017:Odds Ratio; D010710:Phosphates / Q000737:chemistry*; D012008:Recurrence; D000069877:Struvite; D014527:Uric Acid / Q000737:chemistry*; D014545:Urinary Calculi / Q000737:chemistry*; D052878:Urolithiasis / Q000473:pathology / Q000662:veterinary*
D017616:Magnesium Compounds; D010710:Phosphates; D002129:Calcium Oxalate; D014527:Uric Acid; D000069877:Struvite