title: Biomarkers for differentiation of causes of respiratory distress in dogs and cats: Part 2--Lower airway, thromboembolic, and inflammatory diseases.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To review the current veterinary and relevant human literature regarding biomarkers of respiratory diseases leading to dyspnea and to summarize the availability, feasibility, and practicality of using respiratory biomarkers in the veterinary setting.
  
  
  METHODS
  Veterinary and human medical literature: original research articles, scientific reviews, consensus statements, and recent textbooks.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Numerous biomarkers have been evaluated in people for discriminating respiratory disease processes with varying degrees of success.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Although biomarkers should not dictate clinical decisions in lieu of gold standard diagnostics, their use may be useful in directing care in the stabilization process. Serum immunoglobulins have shown promise as an indicator of asthma in cats. A group of biomarkers has also been evaluated in exhaled breath. Of these, hydrogen peroxide has shown the most potential as a marker of inflammation in asthma and potentially aspiration pneumonia, but methods for measurement are not standardized. D-dimers may be useful in screening for thromboembolic disease in dogs. There are a variety of markers of inflammation and oxidative stress, which are being evaluated for their ability to assess the severity and type of underlying disease process. Of these, amino terminal pro-C-type natriuretic peptide may be the most useful in determining if antibiotic therapy is warranted. Although critically evaluated for their use in respiratory disorders, many of the biomarkers which have been evaluated have been found to be affected by more than one type of respiratory or systemic disease.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  At this time, there are point-of-care biomarkers that have been shown to reliably differentiate between causes of dyspnea in dogs and cats. Future clinical research is warranted to understand of how various diseases affect the biomarkers and more bedside tests for their utilization.
authors.affiliation: Emergency Animal  Clinic, Phoenix, AZ, 85233.
authors.forename: Katherine F
authors.initials: KF
authors.lastname: Smith
authors.affiliation: Angell Animal Medical Center, Boston, MA, 02130.
authors.forename: Rebecca L
authors.initials: RL
authors.lastname: Quinn
authors.affiliation: Cape Cod Veterinary Specialists, Buzzards Bay, MA, 02532.
authors.forename: Louisa J
authors.initials: LJ
authors.lastname: Rahilly
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D015415:Biomarkers / Q000097:blood*; D002371:Cat Diseases / Q000097:blood / Q000175:diagnosis*; D002415:Cats; D003422:Critical Care; D004283:Dog Diseases / Q000097:blood / Q000175:diagnosis*; D004285:Dogs; D004417:Dyspnea / Q000209:etiology / Q000662:veterinary; D006801:Humans; D007249:Inflammation / Q000150:complications / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000662:veterinary; D020098:Natriuretic Peptide, C-Type / Q000097:blood*; D019095:Point-of-Care Systems; D012140:Respiratory Tract Diseases / Q000150:complications / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000662:veterinary*; D013923:Thromboembolism / Q000150:complications / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000662:veterinary; D014730:Veterinary Medicine
chemical_list: D015415:Biomarkers; D020098:Natriuretic Peptide, C-Type
keywords: D-dimers; NT-pro-CNP; asthma; breath tests; point-of-care tests