Peer-reviewed veterinary case report
Electrolyte imbalances in dogs with chronic inflammatory bowel disease
By Heilmann, Romy M et al.Ā·Published in Topics in companion animal medicineĀ·2022Ā·Department for Small Animals, GermanyĀ·View original on PubMed ā
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Original publication title: Electrolyte imbalances in dogs with chronic inflammatory enteropathies.
- Species:
- dog
Plain-English summary
A group of dogs with chronic inflammatory bowel issues (CIE) were found to have common electrolyte imbalances, particularly low potassium levels. In a study of 37 dogs, about 19% had hypokalemia (low potassium), which can lead to weakness and other health problems. Some dogs also had low sodium levels, especially those not responding to typical treatments. These imbalances were linked to the severity of their diarrhea. Understanding these issues can help veterinarians provide better care for dogs suffering from CIE.
People also search for: dog diarrhea treatment Ā· dog low potassium symptoms Ā· chronic inflammatory bowel disease in dogs
Abstract
Inflammatory bowel diseases (IBD) in humans are associated with electrolyte shifts and diarrhea. Chronic inflammatory enteropathies (CIE) in dogs produce inflammatory lesions usually located more diffusely throughout the gastrointestinal tract. The prevalence of electrolyte imbalances in canine CIE is unknown. We retrospectively evaluated serum electrolyte (Na, Cl, corrected Cl, and K) concentrations in 37 dogs with CIE. Hypokalemia was the most frequent electrolyte abnormality, affecting 7 (19%) CIE dogs and with no difference between food-responsive and immunosuppressant-responsive (IRE) cases. Hyponatremia was less common (14%) and predominantly seen with IRE; serum Naconcentration correlated with the severity of diarrhea and duodenal histologic lesions. Hypo- (5%) and hyperchloridemia (11%) were also detected. Electrolyte imbalances occur with equal frequency in canine CIE and human IBD. Increased Ksecretion might exceed compromised Na/Clabsorption or Kshifts might be more pronounced in canine CIE. Therefore, the mechanisms underlying CIE-associated diarrhea warrant further research.
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Search related cases āOriginal publication on PubMed: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/34710633/