Open AccessTreatment failure in hyperthyroid cats after radioiodine (I‐131) injection
Author(s) -
Mullowney Deirdre,
Chang YuMei,
Glanemann Barbara,
Syme Harriet M.
Publication year - 2021
Publication title -
journal of veterinary internal medicine
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.356
H-Index - 103
eISSN - 1939-1676
pISSN - 0891-6640
DOI - 10.1111/jvim.16161
Subject(s) - cats , medicine , euthyroid , logistic regression , thyroidectomy , retrospective cohort study , urine specific gravity , gastroenterology , hormone , thyroid , urine
Background There is limited published information on the outcome for cats where total thyroxine concentration (TT4) remains elevated after treatment with radioactive iodine (RAI). Objective To determine the frequency of, and predictors for, subsequent treatment failure in cats for which TT4 remains elevated at hospital discharge, and to report clinical outcomes for cats requiring repeat treatment. Animals One hundred twenty‐one cats with TT4 ≥40 nmol/L after treatment with RAI (out of an original, treated study sample of 959 cats). Methods Retrospective study. Data regarding signalment, weight, TT4 concentration (before RAI treatment, at discharge, and percentage change), day of sampling, and I‐131 dose were acquired. Logistic regression was performed to evaluate predictors of treatment failure. Results In the 87 cats for which classification was possible, 35 (40%) became euthyroid without further treatment. All TT4 variables and weight normalized RAI dose were independently predictive of subsequent treatment failure. In multivariate analysis, TT4 concentration at discharge ( P < .001) and weight normalized RAI dose ( P = .04) remained in the final model. All 28 cats with TT4 concentration ≥150 nmol/L at discharge ultimately failed treatment, compared with 13/40 (32.5%) and 11/19 (57.9%) cats with TT4 concentrations of 40‐100 nmol/L and 100‐150 nmol/L, respectively. Of the 52 cats that failed treatment, 14 were subsequently managed medically, 12 underwent thyroidectomy (4 with carcinoma), 14 had repeat RAI treatment which was successful in 12/14 (86%) cats, and 13 had no further treatment. Conclusions and Clinical Importance Cats with TT4 >150 nmol/L at discharge after RAI might be candidates for immediate repeat treatment.