Search

Contents The gonadotropin-releasing hormone (Gn RH) stimulation test is a common procedure used to investigate normality of the pituitary-gonadal axis in mammals. There is very little information on the technique, its efficacy and side effects in small animals and in particular no information for male cats. In dogs, such test is performed by intravenous ( IV) administration. With cats, the number of times the animal needs to be restrained for blood sampling should be the least possible. The purpose of this study was to assess efficacy and side effects of the Gn RH stimulation test in tomcats comparing the IV with the intramuscular ( IM) route of administration. A Gn RH stimulation test was performed in eight adult tomcats through IM or IV administration of 50 μg gonadorelin. The response of the pituitary-gonadal axis was assessed by measuring serum testosterone on blood samples collected prior to and 1 hr following treatment. When considering each single group of cats, the post-stimulation serum testosterone values were significantly higher than the pre-treatment ones ( p < .05). When comparing the two groups of cats, basal testosterone concentrations did not differ, and also post-Gn RH testosterone concentrations did not differ. In conclusion, in the cats of our study, the Gn RH stimulation test produced the same results following the IM or the IV route of administration. Therefore, in tomcats, the IM route can be considered as effective as the IV one and should be preferred when doing a Gn RH test. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]