Peer-reviewed veterinary case report
How diet affects recovery in dogs with heart failure
By Walker, A L et al.·Published in Journal of veterinary cardiology : the official journal of the European Society of Veterinary Cardiology·2022·School of Veterinary Medicine, United States·View original on PubMed →
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Original publication title: Association of diet with clinical outcomes in dogs with dilated cardiomyopathy and congestive heart failure.
- Species:
- dog
Plain-English summary
A group of dogs with dilated cardiomyopathy (DCM) and congestive heart failure (CHF) were studied to see how their diet affected their health. Dogs that had been on grain-free diets showed better recovery and longer survival after switching to a different diet and receiving standard medical treatment. Specifically, these dogs had improved heart function and needed lower doses of their medications over time compared to those on grain-inclusive diets. The findings suggest that changing from a grain-free diet can lead to better outcomes for dogs diagnosed with DCM and CHF.
People also search for: dog heart disease diet · dilated cardiomyopathy treatment for dogs · grain-free diet effects on dogs with heart problems
Abstract
INTRODUCTION: Dilated cardiomyopathy (DCM) in dogs has been associated with feeding of grain-free (GF), legume-rich diets. Some dogs with presumed diet-associated DCM have shown improved myocardial function and clinical outcomes following a change in diet and standard medical therapy. HYPOTHESIS: Prior GF (pGF) diet influences reverse cardiac remodeling and clinical outcomes in dogs with DCM and congestive heart failure (CHF). ANIMALS AND METHODS: A retrospective study was performed with 67 dogs with DCM and CHF for which diet history was known. Dogs were grouped by diet into pGF and grain-inclusive (GI) groups. Dogs in the pGF group were included if diet change was a component of therapy. Survival was analyzed using Kaplan-Meier curves and the Cox proportional-hazards model. RESULTS: The median survival time was 344 days for pGF dogs vs. 253 days for GI dogs (P = 0.074). Statistically significant differences in median survival were identified when the analysis was limited to dogs surviving longer than one week (P = 0.033). Prior GF dogs had a significantly worse outcome the longer a GF diet was fed prior to diagnosis (P = 0.004) or if they were diagnosed at a younger age (P = 0.017). Prior GF dogs showed significantly greater improvement in normalized left ventricular internal diastolic diameter (P = 0.038) and E-point septal separation (P = 0.031) measurements and significant decreases in their furosemide (P = 0.009) and pimobendan (P < 0.005) dosages over time compared to GI dogs. CONCLUSIONS: Prior GF dogs that survived at least one week after diagnosis of DCM, treatment of CHF, and diet change had better clinical outcomes and showed reverse ventricular remodeling compared to GI dogs.
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Search related cases →Original publication on PubMed: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/33741312/