Evaluation of mean gray values of a cat with chronic renal failure: case report

ABSTRACT In this case, a 12-year-old female domestic cat with chronic renal failure (CRF), which had lived longer than the mean survival time for cats with that condition, was monitored to evaluate the effects of treatment and mean gray value (MGV) changes. The cat has lived for nearly four years since the diagnosis. Probiotics have been used as an additional, classical supportive therapy since the beginning of treatment. The temporal changes in renal MGV were statistically evaluated in the last year of the four-year period. The cat had a comfortable existence and good body condition all her life and probiotic therapy may have had a positive influence post-CRF diagnosis. Ultrasonography (US) examination is a commonly used tool for monitoring the CRF situation, but it is not particularly sensitive. Therefore, MGV may be more useful for the quantitative evaluation of the extent of renal failure. Also, to the best of our knowledge, this is the first report for a long-term clinical evaluation of MGV in a cat with CRF. The aim of this case report was the evaluation of the relationship between MGV and clinical and biochemical changes in a cat with chronic renal failure.

摘要 本病例针对一只罹患慢性肾衰竭（chronic renal failure, CRF）的12岁雌性家猫展开研究，该个体的存活时长超出该病症患猫的平均存活时间。本研究对其进行监测，以评估治疗效果及平均灰度值（mean gray value, MGV）的变化情况。该猫自确诊至今已存活近四年，治疗初期即采用益生菌作为经典的附加支持疗法。在四年研究周期的最后一年内，研究人员对肾脏平均灰度值的时序变化进行了统计学分析。该猫终生生存状态舒适、体况良好，益生菌疗法或对慢性肾衰竭确诊后的病情转归产生了积极影响。超声（ultrasonography, US）检查是临床监测慢性肾衰竭病情的常用手段，但灵敏度有限。相较之下，平均灰度值或许可更精准地定量评估肾衰竭的病变程度。此外，据我们所知，本研究为首次针对慢性肾衰竭患猫的平均灰度值开展长期临床评估的报道。本病例报告的核心目的在于探讨慢性肾衰竭患猫的平均灰度值与临床及生化指标变化之间的关联。