Determination of the IgG index for the detection of intrathecal immunoglobulin synthesis in dogs using an ELISA.

The IgG index is a calculated quotient using IgG and albumin contents of cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) and serum to detect intrathecal IgG synthesis, which is important in the diagnosis of inflammatory infectious diseases of the central nervous system (CNS). An ELISA to measure IgG and albumin contents in blood and CSF was developed to determine the IgG index. Twenty-three normal dogs and 98 dogs with various neurological diseases were examined. In most dogs with infectious inflammatory diseases, with the exception of the acute form of nervous canine distemper, there was an elevation of the IgG index. Tumours of the CNS had an IgG index within the normal range. An elevation was found in lymphoid tumours or meningiomas with secondary cellular infiltration. Degenerative diseases, spinal cord compression and ischaemic myelopathy due to fibrocartilagenous embolism had normal or only slightly elevated IgG indices. In seven cases with inflammatory lesions there was no obvious CSF pleocytosis but the IgG index was elevated. In 17 cases in which infectious inflammatory disease was suspected, based on elevated CSF cell counts, inflammation could be excluded after determination of the IgG index. The reproducibility of the technique was found to be good and, considering the limited amount of time, expense and effort required, the determination of the IgG index in dogs is a useful extension of the conventional CSF examination.