Peer-reviewed veterinary case report
Gastrointestinal effects of aspirin and prednisone in healthy dogs
By Whittemore, Jacqueline C et al.Ā·Published in Journal of veterinary internal medicineĀ·2019Ā·The Department of Small Animal Clinical SciencesĀ·View original on PubMed ā
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Original publication title: Clinical, clinicopathologic, and gastrointestinal changes from aspirin, prednisone, or combination treatment in healthy research dogs: A double-blind randomized trial.
- Species:
- dog
Plain-English summary
A group of healthy research dogs was given either aspirin, prednisone, or a combination of both medications to see how these treatments affected their stomachs. The study found that dogs receiving these medications often developed stomach ulcers and bleeding, especially those on the combination treatment. Surprisingly, many dogs did not show any noticeable symptoms despite having severe stomach issues. This highlights the importance of monitoring dogs on these medications for potential gastrointestinal problems, even if they appear healthy.
People also search for: dog aspirin side effects Ā· prednisone stomach problems in dogs Ā· dog ulcer treatment
Abstract
BACKGROUND: Dogs with immune-mediated disease are often coadministered glucocorticoids and aspirin, but ulcerogenic effects of current protocols are unknown. OBJECTIVES: To compare gastrointestinal changes among dogs administered aspirin, prednisone, and combination treatment. ANIMALS: Twenty-four healthy research dogs. METHODS: Double-blinded, placebo-controlled randomized trial of dogs administered placebo, aspirin (2 mg/kg q24h), prednisone (2 mg/kg q24h), or combination treatment PO for 28 days. Clinical signs were recorded daily, with laboratory work performed at baseline and day 28. Gastrointestinal mucosal hemorrhages, erosions, and ulcers were numerated for endoscopic studies performed on days 0, 14, and 28; endoscopic mucosal lesion scores were calculated. Results were compared using mixed model repeated-measures analyses of variance and generalized estimating equation proportional odds models. P < .05 was considered significant. RESULTS: Gastric mucosal lesion scores differed by treatment-by-time (F[6, 40] = 4.4, P = .002), treatment (F[3, 20] = 7.1, P = .002), and time (F[2, 40] = 18.9, P < .001). Post hoc analysis revealed increased scores in the aspirin (day 14 only), prednisone, and prednisone/aspirin groups during treatment. Ulcers were identified on 14 studies, representing 10 dogs. Dogs receiving prednisone and prednisone/aspirin had 11.1 times (95% CI, 1.7-73.6) and 31.5 times (95% CI, 3.5-288.0) higher odds, respectively, of having endoscopic mucosal lesion scores ≥4 than dogs receiving placebo (P ≤ .01). CONCLUSIONS AND CLINICAL IMPORTANCE: Gastrointestinal bleeding occurs commonly in dogs administered aspirin, prednisone, or prednisone/aspirin treatment, with higher lesion scores for dogs receiving combination treatment. Even severe lesions are not accompanied by clinical signs.
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Search related cases āOriginal publication on PubMed: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/31397009/