Metabolic and hormonal alterations in cats with hepatic lipidosis

Hepatic lipidosis in cats is a commonly diagnosed hepatobiliary disease of unknown cause. The purpose of this prospective study was to characterize th e blood hormone and lipid tarus of cats with hepatic lipidosis, and to comp are this status to that of cats with other types of liver disease and to co ntrol cars. Twenty-three cars with hepatic disease were assigned to 1 of 2 groups on the basis of cytopathologic or histopathologic examination of the liver: group 1, hepatic lipidosis (n = 18): or group 2, cholangiohepatitis (n = 5). Ten healthy young adult cats were used as controls. Food was with held from control animals for 24 hours before blood collection. Concentrati ons of plasma glucagon and serum insulin, cortisol, thyroxine, triglyceride s, cholesterol, phospholipid, and nonesterified fatty acids (NEFAs) were de termined in all cars, in addition to routine hematologic and serum biochemi cal testing. Cats with hepatic lipidosis had higher serum NEFA concentratio ns than cats with cholangiohepatitis or control cats (P < .05). Cats with c holangiohepatitis had higher serum cholesterol and phospholipid concentrati ons than those of cats with lipidosis or control cars (P < .05); their plas ma glucagon concentrations were higher than those of control cats (P < .05) , but were not different from those of cats with hepatic lipidosis. Serum i nsulin concentrations were significantly higher in control cats than in dis eased cats (P < .05), but neither serum insulin nor the insulin to glucagon ratio was significantly different among the cats with hepatic disease. The high concentration of NEFAs in cats with hepatic lipidosis suggests that o r least 1 factor in the pathogenesis of this syndrome may involve the regul ation of hormone-sensitive lipase.