Comparison of creatine kinase in cerebrospinal fluid collected from the cerebellomedullary and lumbar cisterna in 10 dogs with neurologic disease.

BACKGROUND: Analysis of cerebrospinal fluid CK (CSF-CK) might be useful as a prognostic indicator in dogs with neurologic disease. Previous studies have mostly analyzed CSF-CK collected from the cerebellomedullary (CM) cisterna, but CSF collection sites could affect its levels.

OBJECTIVES: This is a pilot study aimed to evaluate differences in CSF-CK concentrations when collected from the CM or lumbar cisterna in dogs presenting with neurologic disease.

METHODS: Ten dogs presenting for neurologic disease underwent magnetic resonance imaging and CSF collection from both the CM and lumbar cisterna. Cerebrospinal fluid CK was analyzed within 30 minutes.

RESULTS: Ten dogs were prospectively recruited. Overall, there was no statistically significant difference between CSF-CK collected from the CM or lumbar cisterna (P = .31). When evaluated by neurolocalization, CSF-CK was different between sites in dogs with thoracolumbar myelopathy (P = .024), but not in dogs with intracranial or cervical neurolocalization (P = .93). All dogs with thoracolumbar myelopathy had equivocal or higher CK levels at the lumbar collection site compared with levels at the CM collection site.

CONCLUSIONS: Cerebrospinal fluid CK values differed depending on the CSF site collection, especially in dogs with thoracolumbar myelopathy. In dogs with thoracolumbar myelopathy, CSF-CK was likely to be higher when CSF was taken from the lumbar cisterna compared with the CM cisterna. Collecting CSF from the thoracolumbar site could provide better prognostic information than if collected at the CM collection site.