[Incidence of bacterial cystitis in diabetic dogs and cats at the time of diagnosis. Retrospective study for the period 1990-1996].

Bacterial cystitis is a problem often found among patients suffering from diabetes mellitus. Insulin management can be impaired by this condition. Diagnosis and therapy of a urinary tract infection are very important in regarding the possibility of bacteria ascending to the kidneys because in a great amount of diabetic patients the kidneys are already damaged by diabetic glomerular nephropathy. Compared to other patients of our clinic the frequency of cystitis among diabetic dogs (n = 158, cystitis diagnosed in 12.7%) and cats (n = 71, cystitis diagnosed in 9.9%) was already considerably higher when diabetes mellitus was diagnosed in these animals. In this retrospective study female animals were far more affected than males. The diagnosis of cystitis among cats and dogs was most frequent when patients had already been suffering from polydipsia and polyuria for more than four weeks. A division among the dogs depending on the etiology of diabetes mellitus led to the following result: especially patients suffering from Cushing's disease and bitches with progesterone-STH-induced diabetes mellitus--particularly when endometritis or pyometra was found--were running the highest risk of developing urinary infections. The bacterium most frequently isolated in the urine samples was E. coli.