Canine Hypoadrenocorticism: A Bibliographic Review

Canine hypoadrenocorticism may be characterized by insufficiency of adrenocortical hormonal secretion of glucocorticoids and mineralocorticoids. Clinical signs are nonspecific such as dehydration, hypovolemic shock, bradycardia, hypotension, emesis, diarrhea, among other clinical and laboratory changes, and can mimic other diseases, and because of this, the disease can go unnoticed by the veterinarian, increasing the mortality and morbidity of patients seen in emergency consultations. Despite being of low occurrence, hypoadrenocorticism is often underdiagnosed, and should be considered in the differential diagnosis in the presence of gastrointestinal clinical signs or hypovolemic shock, and low Sodium:Potassium ratio. The definitive diagnosis is based on the dosage of cortisol before and after the application of the adrenocorticotrophic hormone. Acute treatment consists of patient stabilization, and chronic includes replacement of glucocorticoids and mineralocorticoids. Prognosis is usually favorable if the diagnosis is early and the correct treatment is performed. This article is a review focusing on clinical signs, laboratory findings, diagnosis and treatment on canine hypoadrenocorticism, to increase the knowledge about the disease to veterinarians.