not necessarily ... (more)

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Posted by iZ's mom on December 12, 1999 at 19:59:05:

In Reply to: The urea is low... And it is usually one of the first thing the get high with dehydratation... (n/m) posted by Julie :o) on December 12, 1999 at 14:45:14:

iZ was extremely dehydrated a month ago ~ blood tests showed a *very low* Urea Nitrogen of 1.0 mg/dl (lab norms ~ 6-15 mg/dl)
what indicates dehydration in reptiles is elevated levels of Albumin + Total Protein ...

the problem with reptiles is that the things that indicate problems in mammals *do not* always indicate when a reptile is having problems ...
for example: in mammals blood levels of BUN, Creatinine, Urea Nitrogen will indicate how well the kidneys are working, or if there is a problem ... with reptiles, this test is *not* helpful at all ... the best indicator of renal problems in reptiles is to look at the calcium:phosphorous ratio ... even then, it's still guess work at best ... iZ's ratio was 1:1.3 which in no way indicated the *severe kidney problems* that were discovered during his surgery (+ subsequent kidney biopsy) ...

reptile medicine is still a fairly new thing ... they just don't know as much about iggies as they do about puppies + kitties ... :(

iZ's mom

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:o) (n/m) Julie 12/12/99 (0)

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: iZ was extremely dehydrated a month ago ~ blood tests showed a *very low* Urea Nitrogen of 1.0 mg/dl (lab norms ~ 6-15 mg/dl) : what indicates dehydration in reptiles is elevated levels of Albumin + Total Protein ... : the problem with reptiles is that the things that indicate problems in mammals *do not* always indicate when a reptile is having problems ... : for example: in mammals blood levels of BUN, Creatinine, Urea Nitrogen will indicate how well the kidneys are working, or if there is a problem ... with reptiles, this test is *not* helpful at all ... the best indicator of renal problems in reptiles is to look at the calcium:phosphorous ratio ... even then, it's still guess work at best ... iZ's ratio was 1:1.3 which in no way indicated the *severe kidney problems* that were discovered during his surgery (+ subsequent kidney biopsy) ... : reptile medicine is still a fairly new thing ... they just don't know as much about iggies as they do about puppies + kitties ... :( : iZ's mom

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