Prediction of Ionized Calcium from Total Serum Calcium in Dogs and Exploration of the Role of Vitamin D Metabolites in Canine Calcium Oxalate Urolithiasis

Abstract

The following thesis is a combination of two projects that took course over a 3-year period at the University of Minnesota. These two studies, one a medical record review and one a prospective study, are connected by the common thread of disorders of calcium metabolism. Chapter one serves as an introduction to the complex metabolic pathways that regulate both calcium and vitamin D handling in the body. A portion of this chapter will be dedicated to the methodology of measuring of calcium and vitamin D metabolites. This chapter also serves as an introduction to calcium oxalate urolithiasis as an important medical condition in humans and animals that is often characterized by dysfunctional calcium handling. Chapters two and three are two separates studies performed at the University of Minnesota. Chapter two details a retrospective medical record review that further characterizes prediction of ionized hypercalcemia using total serum calcium. Chapter three details a prospective study evaluating the connection between canine calcium oxalate urolithiasis and alterations in vitamin D metabolism.