IDEXX Breakthrough Kidney Function Test SDMA Added to IRIS Staging Guidelines

Over one million pets tested; SDMA detects over 2 times the number of cats and dogs with kidney disease

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Oct 05, 2015, 07:30 ET

WESTBROOK, Maine, Oct. 5, 2015 /PRNewswire/ -- IDEXX Laboratories, Inc. (NASDAQ: IDXX) today announced that the International Renal Interest Society (IRIS) has now added symmetric dimethylarginine (SDMA) to their chronic kidney disease (CKD) staging guidelines. Since the SDMA test became commercially available from IDEXX in July, more than 12,000 clinics have submitted over one million blood samples to IDEXX Reference Laboratories for SDMA testing. Results from these tests show that SDMA has helped veterinarians detect early-stage kidney disease in more than 90,000 cats and dogs when their creatinine values were still normal. The SDMA test is now automatically included in all routine chemistry panels from IDEXX Reference Laboratories at no additional cost and is transforming how veterinarians detect and manage chronic kidney disease in cats and dogs.

"Screening with SDMA has enabled my team to proactively detect and begin treating pets for kidney disease while the kidneys are still functioning," said Dr. Kate Pietsch of Anchor Animal Hospital, Dartmouth, Mass. "The test has also inspired me to begin proactively educating pet owners about kidney disease early in pets' lives to encourage them to be extra vigilant about screening and monitoring for symptoms."

IDEXX now has one of the largest databases on the prevalence of chronic kidney disease, with over one million SDMA results generated to date across cats and dogs of all ages and breeds. SDMA is identifying over 2 times the number of pets with early CKD than traditional methods. In other words, without the SDMA test, one out of every two cats and dogs with early stage CKD would have been missed by traditional testing methods.¹ Of note, in the first one million animals tested with SDMA, CKD was seen more frequently as pets progressed in age, providing solid evidence that as dogs and cats age they are more likely to develop CKD. This early data provides additional support for the numerous peer-reviewed scientific studies that show SDMA is a highly reliable marker of CKD and that it correlates with creatinine in advanced disease.

"IRIS recognizes that SDMA is a new biomarker for renal dysfunction that can allow for earlier detection of chronic kidney disease," said Astrid M. van Dongen, DVM, DipRNVA (Internal Medicine), president of the IRIS Board and associate professor of internal medicine/nephrology, faculty of veterinary medicine, Utrecht University. "SDMA has the potential to expand diagnostic insight and therapeutic opportunities for veterinarians caring for pets with this critical disease."

IRIS, a board of 15 world-renowned independent veterinarians from 10 different countries with particular expertise in nephrology, recently added SDMA testing to their 2015 IRIS CKD Staging Guidelines:

"SDMA concentrations in blood (plasma or serum) may be a more sensitive biomarker of renal function than blood creatinine. A persistent increase in SDMA above 14 µg/dl suggests reduced renal function and may be a reason to consider a dog or cat with creatinine values <1.4 or <1.6 mg/dl, respectively, as IRIS CKD Stage 1."

"In IRIS CKD Stage 2 patients with low body condition scores, SDMA ≥25 µg/dl may indicate the degree of renal dysfunction has been underestimated. Consider treatment recommendations listed under IRIS CKD Stage 3 for this patient."

"In IRIS CKD Stage 3 patients with low body condition scores, SDMA ≥45 µg/dl may indicate the degree of renal dysfunction has been underestimated. Consider treatment recommendations listed under IRIS CKD Stage 4 for this patient."

The IRIS CKD Staging Guidelines can be found on the IRIS website, www.iris-kidney.com/guidelines/guidelines_updates_2014-2015.shtml.

"SDMA represents the most significant diagnostic innovation in veterinary medicine in 30 years, especially given the prevalence of chronic kidney disease in cats and dogs. IRIS has recognized the medical science behind the test and its value, helping veterinarians identify kidney disease earlier when there's still time to do something about it," said Jonathan W. Ayers, president and chief executive officer of IDEXX Laboratories. "The introduction earlier this year of the new SDMA test is an outgrowth of our commitment to ongoing investment in R&D and new product development in veterinary medicine."

About IDEXX Laboratories, Inc.
IDEXX Laboratories, Inc. is a leader in pet healthcare innovation, serving practicing veterinarians around the world with a broad range of diagnostic and information technology-based products and services. IDEXX products enhance the ability of veterinarians to provide advanced medical care, improve staff efficiency and to build more economically successful practices. IDEXX is also a worldwide leader in providing livestock and poultry diagnostic tests and tests for the quality and safety of water and milk. Headquartered in Maine, IDEXX Laboratories employs more than 6,000 people and offers products to customers in more than 175 countries.