EN08 - Relationship Between Haemoglobin A1c and Fructosamine Concentrations and Survival in Diabetic Dogs

Abstract: Background - Haemoglobin A1c (HbA1c) and fructosamine can assist in assessing glycaemic control in dogs with diabetes mellitus (DM). The relationship between these parameters and survival is unknown. Objective - To investigate the relationship between HbA1c, fructosamine and survival in dogs with DM.Animals - Forty-seven client-owned dogs referred with DM within six months of diagnosis. Methods - Single-centre retrospective observational study. HbA1c and fructosamine concentrations were measured using previously validated immunoturbimetric and colormetric assays respectively. The averages of values obtained within the first 6 months after the first measurements were calculated. Survival time was defined as survival after the first available measurement. Dogs that were still alive at the time of analysis were censored.Results - There was moderate positive correlation between the average HbA1c and average fructosamine (r= 0.609; 95%CI: 0.390-0.763). Median overall-survival time for dogs that died during the study period (n=33) was 366 days (range 0-1451) with 66.7%, 51.5%, 27.3% and 15.2% of those dogs surviving for 6, 12, 24 and 36 months, respectively. There was no correlation either between the average HbA1c (r= 0.009; 95%CI: -0.335-0.351) nor the average fructosamine (r= 0.301;95% CI: -0.047-0.584) and overall survival. There was also no significant difference in average HbA1c or average fructosamine in dogs being alive or deceased after 6, 12, 24 and 36 months, respectively. Conclusions and clinical importance - The results of this study do not support the value of average HbA1c or fructosamine concentrations for predicting survival in this cohort of dogs with DM.