Abstract
Background. Serum bile acids (SBA) are used as a routine screening tool of liver function in dogs. Serum samples are usually shipped to a referral laboratory for quantitative analysis with an enzymatic chemistry analyzer. The canine SNAP Bile Acids Test (SNAP-BAT) provides an immediate, semi-quantitative measurement of bile acid concentrations in-house. With the SNAP-BAT, bile acids concentrations of 5–30 µmol/L are quantified, and results outside of that range are classified as <5 or >30 µmol/L. Agreement of the SNAP-BAT with the enzymatic method has not been extensively investigated.Objectives. The purposes of this prospective clinical study were to assess the precision of the SNAP-BAT and determine agreement of SNAP-BAT with results from an in-house chemistry analyzer.Methods. After verifying intra-assay precision of the SNAP-BAT, a prospective analysis was performed using blood samples collected from 56 dogs suspected to have liver disease. Each sample was analyzed with an enzymatic, in-house chemistry analyzer and the SNAP-BAT. Agreement between the two methods was statistically assessed using the κ index of agreement.Results. Intra-assay variability was minimal. The κ index for agreement between the SNAP-BAT and routine chemistry analyzer was between 0.752 and 0.819, indicating substantial to near perfect agreement.Conclusions. The SNAP-BAT is a highly accurate, semi-quantitative test that yields immediate results, and has very little intra-assay variability, particularly for results >30 µmol/L.
Highlights
Bile acids are synthesized exclusively within hepatocytes from cholesterol, excreted into the biliary tract and stored in the gallbladder
Bile acids are removed from portal blood by hepatocytes and recycled back into the biliary system
Paired bile acid samples were available from 17 dogs, and a single, unclassified sample was available from each of 39 dogs
Summary
Bile acids are synthesized exclusively within hepatocytes from cholesterol, excreted into the biliary tract and stored in the gallbladder. With the SNAP-BAT, bile acids concentrations of 5–30 μmol/L are quantified, and results outside of that range are classified as 30 μmol/L. The purposes of this prospective clinical study were to assess the precision of the SNAP-BAT and determine agreement of SNAP-BAT with results from an in-house chemistry analyzer. After verifying intra-assay precision of the SNAP-BAT, a prospective analysis was performed using blood samples collected from 56 dogs suspected to have liver disease. The κ index for agreement between the SNAP-BAT and routine chemistry analyzer was between 0.752 and 0.819, indicating substantial to near perfect agreement. The SNAP-BAT is a highly accurate, semi-quantitative test that yields immediate results, and has very little intra-assay variability, for results >30 μmol/L
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