RenalTech inspires more veterinary visits and better preventive care for cats

FOUNTAIN VALLEY, Calif., April 13, 2021 /PRNewswire/ -- Antech Diagnostics, part of Mars Veterinary Health, released new data today showing that all cats from a retrospective review of 730,000 veterinary visits received improved preventive care following a positive or negative RenalTech™, which predicts chronic kidney disease (CKD) in cats 2 years before it occurs. Data show the predictive diagnostic tool increased veterinary visits by as much as 31%. Additionally, pet owners proactively sought CKD-related early interventions, including food and medications. The findings support RenalTech's value as a diagnostic tool for veterinarians seeking to improve overall feline wellness while also positively impacting the health of cats facing CKD.

"With appropriate medical management, cats with chronic kidney disease can survive for a significant amount of time with good quality of life," said Jonathan Elliott, MA, Vet MB, PhD, Cert SAC, Dip ECVPT, MRCVS, Professor of Veterinary Clinical Pharmacology at Royal Veterinary College in London. "However, the perennial issue with cats has always been getting them in the door, and for cats with CKD, diagnosing them early enough for early care strategies to make a difference. With recent developments in diagnostic tests and ways of utilizing the data we gather from routine geriatric health screens, we now have a very real opportunity to impact both access to preventive care for all cats and improve on the duration of good quality of life of cats facing and living with CKD."

One in 3 cats will develop CKD in their lifetime. Diagnostics that go beyond early diagnosis to disease prediction allow veterinarians to begin monitoring and treating CKD when it is identified early, leading to interventions that are most effective at this stage. As veterinary medicine's first predictive diagnostic tool, RenalTech combines artificial intelligence and machine learning with 20 years of data from over 150,000 cats to predict whether or not a cat will develop CKD within 2 years with 95% accuracy. In the one-year, retrospective analysis of RenalTech's impact on preventive care practices, researchers found that regardless of a cat's positive or negative status, RenalTech use alone created opportunities for the following:

1. Early interventions to delay CKD onset and progression—pet owners with RenalTech-positive cats proactively sought proven early care strategies for CKD: 31.5% purchased renal therapeutic diets vs. only 4.8% percent of all other cats, and 41% purchased CKD-related medications vs. only 26.3% of all other cats.  
2. Improved preventive care for all cats—all cats regardless of RenalTech status received improved, sustained veterinary care. Visits from RenalTech-negative cats increased 14% year-over-year while visits from RenalTech-positive cats increased 31%.

"Cats don't like visiting the vet, and this simple fact has limited their access to preventive care for decades," said Dr. Jennifer Ogeer, DVM, MSc., MBA, MA, VP Medical Affairs & Commercial Marketing. "Now, we know that an early warning of disease is an incredibly powerful motivator for owners, who naturally respond to the opportunity to treat CKD proactively. Perhaps more importantly though, we also know from the data that regardless of status, RenalTech use alone improved all cats' access to preventive care. In this sense, and like RenalTech itself, the data is another first for veterinary medicine."

Responding to the opportunity to treat CKD before it occurs, Antech also offers veterinary medicine's only complete solution for disease prediction, early diagnosis, staging and monitoring. The diagnostic portfolio includes RenalTech as well as SDMA™ (symmetric dimethylarginine), the renal biomarker for CKD. Combined, these advanced diagnostics offer veterinarians a unique opportunity to support the best possible outlook for cats facing disease.

"RenalTech has been a great additional value to our patients and clients," said John Faught, DVM, Chief Medical Officer for Firehouse Animal Health Centers of Austin, TX. "At Firehouse Animal Health Center, we have long utilized routine lab work to assess our patients' evolving function. By evaluating those trends and spot checks, we have hoped to make a difference earlier in disease or aging processes. Never before, though, have we been able to use those values to actually predict the future of our pets' health. RenalTech intersects Antech's advanced laboratory testing with innovative statistical data analysis to provide truly preventive medicine instead of reactionary."

In the retrospective analysis, study subjects visited between December 2019 and December 2020. Please visit https://web.antechdiagnostics.com/press to access the study.

About RenalTech
RenalTech is the first in a series of predictive diagnostic tools that uses the computing power of artificial intelligence and machine learning to predict whether or not a cat will develop CKD up to 2 years prior to diagnosis with greater than 95% accuracy. A first for veterinary medicine, RenalTech was developed in collaboration with Mars Petcare, the WALTHAM Petcare Science Institute and the Royal Veterinary College. RenalTech is available free of charge to Antech customers as part of routine bloodwork and urinalysis. To learn more, please visit www.antechdiagnostics.com/renaltech, which includes a care pathway for RenalTech results detailing early care strategies for CKD in accordance with International Renal Interest Society (IRIS) guidelines.

About Antech
At the heart of Antech is our love for pets. Combining innovative technologies backed by scientific rigor with data-driven insights and consultative moments, we help veterinarians and their teams improve the health and well-being of the pets we love. Our commitment to customers spans more than 30 years and celebrates their dedication to setting new standards in pet care quality, which we support through innovative diagnostic, imaging, education and support services. Today, Antech is driving the future of pet health as part of Mars Petcare, the world's leading pet nutrition and health care ecosystem. Visit us at http://www.antechdiagnostics.com. Follow us at Twitter, LinkedIn, Facebook and YouTube.

SOURCE Antech Diagnostics

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