Assessment of the calcium and phosphorus nutrition in horses by analysis of urine.
Abstract: Studied were made to determine if a practical assessment of the calcium and phosphorus nutrition of horses could be obtained from an analysis of urine samples. The concentrations of Ca and P in urine samples changed markedly when groups of 4 mares were fed diets containing from 1.0 to 3.9 g Ca/kg and from 1.5 to 6.1 g P/kg, but serum concentrations of Ca and P remained relatively constant. The concentrations in single urine samples were considered unreliable indicators of excretion of the minerals because of variations in water excretion, and two methods to overcome this problem were examined. In one method, the creatinine clearance ratios (%Cr) of Ca and P were calculated. The other method was simpler, and concentrations of the minerals were expressed as the ratio of the total solute concentration. Both of these methods appeared to give reliable estimates of the excretion of Ca and P in urine, and there were significant relationships between the values obtained for horses fed diets containing a wide range of Ca and P. When the horses were fed adequate Ca, the Ca-%Cr was greater than 2.5% and P-%Cr was less than 4%. The corresponding ratios of mineral concentration to solute concentration were greater than 15 mumole Ca/mosmole and less than 15 mumole P/mosmole. When a low Ca (1.0 g/kg) and high P (4 g/kg) diet was fed, the excretion of Ca and P had changed markedly after 3 days and could be monitored in single samples of urine by either method. It was concluded that a practical assessment of the Ca and P nutrition of horses could be obtained from an analysis of urine samples to determine if the diet is either low, adequate or high in Ca, and high in P.
Publication Date: 1982-04-01 PubMed ID: 7126061DOI: 10.1111/j.1751-0813.1982.tb00621.xGoogle Scholar: Lookup
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- Journal Article
- Research Support
- Non-U.S. Gov't
Summary
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The research attempted to evaluate calcium and phosphorus nutrition in horses through urine analysis, and found that both calcium and phosphorus levels in urine could indicate nutritional intake, and methods used to adjust for water excretion variations proved to be successful and reliable.
Objective and Methodology
- The objective of this study was to explore the viability of using urine samples to assess the calcium and phosphorus nutritional intake of horses.
- The research involved changing calcium and phosphorus diets of four mare groups, incorporating ranges from 1.0 to 3.9 g Ca/kg and 1.5 to 6.1 g P/kg respectively.
- The researchers noted that there were significant fluctuations in the concentration of calcium and phosphorus in urine, while the serum concentrations of the two minerals in the horses’ blood remained comparatively stable.
- The unsteadiness in singular urine samples, attributed to variations in water excretion, was noted as an challenge in this measurement method.
Addressing the Water Excretion Variance
- To tackle the issue of water excretion variation, two methods were utilised. The first was to compute the creatinine clearance ratios of calcium and phosphorus (Ca-%Cr and P-%Cr).
- The second approach merely entailed expressing the minerals’ concentrations as the ratio of the total solute concentration.
- Both of the proposed techniques were found to deliver reliable estimates of calcium and phosphorus excretion in urine, and there were significant relationships between the values obtained for horses fed different levels of calcium and phosphorus diets.
Evaluation of Results and Findings
- The researchers established parameters for adequate calcium intake, where the Ca-%Cr was above 2.5% and P-%Cr was below 4%.
- Furthermore, when a diet low in calcium (1.0 g/kg) and high in phosphorus (4 g/kg) was administered, the mineral excretion rates changed noticeably after just three days, and could be monitored using single urine samples.
- The study concluded that a practical assessment of calcium and phosphorus nutrition in horses can in fact be derived via urine analysis.
Cite This Article
APA
Caple IW, Doake PA, Ellis PG.
(1982).
Assessment of the calcium and phosphorus nutrition in horses by analysis of urine.
Aust Vet J, 58(4), 125-131.
https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1751-0813.1982.tb00621.x Publication
Researcher Affiliations
MeSH Terms
- Animal Feed / analysis
- Animal Nutritional Physiological Phenomena
- Animals
- Calcium / analysis
- Calcium / metabolism
- Calcium / urine
- Creatinine / metabolism
- Female
- Horses / urine
- Osmolar Concentration
- Phosphorus / analysis
- Phosphorus / urine
- Specific Gravity
Citations
This article has been cited 1 times.- Grez-Capdeville M, Crenshaw TD. Evaluation of calcium to phosphorus ratio in spot urine samples as a practical method to monitor phosphorus intake adequacy in sows.. J Anim Sci 2021 Dec 1;99(12).
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