Glycosylated Hemoglobin in Dogs: Precision, Stability, and Diagnostic Utility

Abstract

SummaryThe precision and stability or the ion exchange chromatography assay for canine glycosylated hemoglobin (HbA1) were examined. The coefficient of variation (CV) of within‐run replicate assays was 1.3 to 2.6%; the CV of between‐run duplicate assays was 3.1%. The mean HbA1content in 44 healthy dogs was 7.1% (SD = 1.1%, range = 5.1–9.7%). Paired aliquots of 12 blood samples were stored at 4° and 25°, and HbA1was measured on the day of collection and at 3, 5, and 7 days aftercollection. In the blood stored at 4°, no significant increase in the HbA1content was seen. No significant increase in HbA1content was found in the blood stored at 25° after 3 days, but dramatic increases were observed after 5 and 7 days of storage. No significant difference was observed in the HbA1content in heart blood collected 18 hours after death from 9 dogs kept at 25°C.The HbA1content was measured in 10 hospitalized diabetic dogs. Five of the dogs had received no insulin and all 5 had elevated HbA, values. The other 5 dogs had received insulin for 1 to 9 months; 2 of the 5 had increased HbA1content. The HbA1content was determined periodically for 9 months in one diabetic dog and it declined from 14.0% to 8.2%.