Abstract: Background– Corticosteroids are among the most commonly used drugs in cats and have been discussed as a treatment for feline pancreatitis. However, its effects on serum lipase in healthy cats remain unknown. Objectives– To evaluate effects of prednisolone on DGGR-lipase activity and pancreatic lipase immunoreactivity (PLI) in cats. Animals– 7 clinically healthy colony cats, aged 4-7 years, with unremarkable CBC/biochemistry panel. Methods– Prednisolone (1.1-1.5 mg/kg, median 1.28 mg/kg PO) was given daily for 7 consecutive days. DGGR-lipase activity (LIPC Roche; RI, 8-26 U/L), and PLI (Spec fPL; RI, 0-3.5 µg/L) were determined before first treatment (day 0) and at days 1, 2, 3, 8, 10, 14. Cats were examined daily. An a priori power analysis indicated that 6 cats were needed to find a biological relevant effect at 1-β = 0.8. A Friedman test followed by a posthoc Dunn's test was used to compare lipase activities/PLI concentrations at multiple time points with day 0. Results– Median (range) day 0 lipase activities and PLI were 22 U/L (14–52 U/L) and 3.2 µg/L (2.3-15.7 µg/L). One cat with increased lipase activity (52 U/L) and PLI (15.7 µg/L) at day 0 continued having increased lipase activities and PLI throughout the study. Lipase activities and PLI concentrations did not differ significantly between time points regardless of whether the cat with increased values was included or not. All cats remained healthy throughout the study. Conclusions and clinical importance – Administration of prednisolone in anti-inflammatory doses does not significantly increase DGGR-lipase activity and PLI concentration.
