Peer-reviewed veterinary case report
Low Vitamin D Linked to Poor Outcome in Dogs with Protein Losing
By Allenspach, K et al.·Published in BMC veterinary research·2017·Department of Clinical Sciences and Services, United Kingdom·View original on PubMed →
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Original publication title: Hypovitaminosis D is associated with negative outcome in dogs with protein losing enteropathy: a retrospective study of 43 cases.
- Species:
- dog
Plain-English summary
A group of 43 dogs diagnosed with protein losing enteropathy (PLE), a condition that causes severe protein loss, were studied to see how vitamin D levels affected their health outcomes. The dogs with lower vitamin D levels had a higher chance of dying from PLE within four months of diagnosis compared to those with better vitamin D levels. Dogs that were treated with special hydrolyzed or elimination diets showed better outcomes. This suggests that maintaining healthy vitamin D levels may be important for dogs with PLE, and further research is needed to explore vitamin D as a treatment option.
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Abstract
BACKGROUND: Hypovitaminosis D has previously been shown to be prevalent amongst dogs with protein losing enteropathy (PLE). The hypothesis of this study was that Low 25-hydroxyvitamin D (25(OH) D) serum concentrations could be a risk factor for negative outcome in dogs with PLE. Forty-three dogs diagnosed with PLE (2005-2014) and which serum Vitamin D serum concentrations were collected and archived at -80 Degrees C were analyzed. Post-diagnostic communication with referring veterinarians was made to determine outcome of PLE dogss: Dogs which died due to PLE within 4 months after diagnosis (negative outcome group, n = 22) and dogs alive or which died due to another disease at the end point of the study (1 year after diagnosis, good outcome group, n = 21). Serum samples taken at the time of diagnosis were analysed for ionized calcium (iCa) concentrations and serum 25(OH) D concentration. RESULTS: Clinical (CCECAI) scores, age at PLE diagnosis, and iCa concentrations were not significantly different between dog groups. A significantly greater (p < 0.001) number of PLE dogs treated with hydrolyzed or elimination diet alone showed good outcome as compared to the PLE negative outcome group. Median serum 25(OH) D concentration was significantly (p = 0.017) lower in dogs with negative outcome versus PLE dogs with good outcome. Using logistic regression analysis, 25(OH) D serum concentration was shown to be a statistically significant factor for outcome determination. Cox regression analysis yielded a hazard ratio of 0.974 (95% CI 0.949, 0.999) per each one nmol/l increase in serum 25(OH) D concentration. CONCLUSIONS: Low serum 25(OH) D concentration in PLE dogs was significantly associated with poor outcome. Further studies are required to investigate the clinical efficacy of Vitamin D (cholecalciferol) as a potential therapeutic agent for dogs with PLE.
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Search related cases →Original publication on PubMed: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/28390394/