Evidence of renal tubular injury in canine patients after elective desexing

To investigate the frequency of perioperative acute kidney injury (AKI) in American Society of Anesthesiologists (SA) Grade I canine patients undergoing elective desexing using urine microscopy techniques and assess if pre- and intraoperative factors affect risk of developing AKI. Prospective observational clinical study conducted between September 2020 and October 2020. University teaching hospital. Thirty-two female and four male dogs between 5 months and 5 years of age classified as ASA I undergoing elective desexing surgery. Urinalysis was performed preoperatively and 20-24 h postoperatively to identify markers of renal tubular injury (RTI), particularly the presence of granular and renal tubular epithelial cell (RTEC) casts on sediment analysis. Dogs underwent a full physical examination and a preoperative assessment including measurement of urine specific gravity (USG), packed cell volume (PCV), total plasma protein and serum creatinine (sCr) was conducted as a part of the desexing programme. Anaesthetic records were examined for any evidence of intraoperative hypotension, defined as a mean arterial pressure (MAP) of