Summary
The urinary corticoid:creatinine (c:c) ratio was determined in ten pony mares suffering from hyperlipoproteinaemia. The mean (± sd) urinary c:c ratio of these ten ponies (47 ± 31 x 10‐6) was not significantly different from that of twelve pony mares with a pituitary pars intermedia adenoma (31 ± 18 x 10‐6). The correlation between the urinary concentration of corticoids and plasma total lipids, and the correlation between the urinary c:c ratio and plasma total lipids in ponies with hyperlipoproteinaemia were not significant (P > 0.05; r=0.53 and r=‐0.008, respectively).
Preliminary results favour primary hyperadrenocorticism being associated with hyperlipoproteinaemia. In conclusion, the data presented here suggest that cortisol can contribute to insulin resistance in ponies with hyperlipoproteinaemia.
Notes
Department of Large Animal Medicine and Nutrition, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Utrecht University, P.O. Box 80152, 3508 TD Utrecht, the Netherlands.