SDMA in Cats: Understanding a High Result and Next Steps

What does SDMA measure?

IDEXX describes SDMA as a marker used in assessing kidney function. Its clinical interpretation belongs alongside the rest of the patient assessment. This page does not claim SDMA always rises a fixed number of years before another marker. IDEXX: SDMA testing.

For your appointment, ask what the result adds to the creatinine and urine findings, and whether previous results change its meaning. Record the veterinarian's interpretation rather than treating a number as a stand-alone prognosis.

What is a normal SDMA level in cats?

Use the reference interval printed by the laboratory that ran the test. A reference interval and an IRIS staging boundary are different things. Do not convert an isolated flag into an automatic CKD stage.

IRIS provides guidance for veterinary assessment and staging. Your veterinarian determines whether CKD is established and whether staging is appropriate for the clinical situation. IRIS guideline directory. Our IRIS reference is educational, not a diagnostic calculator.

How do you lower SDMA in cats?

The useful question is what the result means for this cat and which underlying issues need attention. There is no universal supplement, food switch or home fluid dose on this page to lower the number. Follow the individualized plan and ask how its effect will be assessed.

Do not start or increase fluids, change medicines or restrict food just because SDMA is high. Ask when a repeat test is appropriate and which other results should be checked with it.

Build a lab record that preserves context

• Date, laboratory, test name, result, units and reference interval.
• Creatinine and urine results from the same visit, if available.
• Symptoms or changes you reported to the clinic.
• The clinic's interpretation and the planned follow-up.

Leave missing information blank instead of importing a different laboratory's range. Keep the full report so a simplified tracker never replaces the original evidence.