Peer-reviewed veterinary case report
Oral vitamin B12 helps cats with low B12 and gut issues
By Toresson, Linda et al.·Published in Journal of feline medicine and surgery·2017·1 Department of Equine and Small Animal Medicine·View original on PubMed →
PetCaseFinder translated the abstract of this peer-reviewed paper into plain English so pet owners can read it. We do not publish original research — every detail traces back to the citation above. How we work →
Original publication title: Oral cobalamin supplementation in cats with hypocobalaminaemia: a retrospective study.
- Species:
- cat
Plain-English summary
A group of cats with low vitamin B12 levels (hypocobalaminaemia) and signs of gastrointestinal issues were treated with daily oral cobalamin (vitamin B12) tablets. After 27 to 94 days of treatment, all the cats showed significantly improved vitamin B12 levels, well above the normal range. This suggests that oral cobalamin can effectively raise vitamin B12 levels in cats, making it a potential alternative to injections. If your cat is experiencing gastrointestinal problems and has low vitamin B12, talk to your vet about oral supplementation options.
People also search for: cat low vitamin B12 treatment · cat gastrointestinal disease symptoms · oral cobalamin for cats
Abstract
Objectives The objective of the study was to evaluate whether oral cobalamin supplementation can restore normocobal-aminaemia in cats with hypocobalaminaemia and clinical signs of gastrointestinal disease. Methods This was a retrospective study based on a computerised database search for client-owned cats treated at Evidensia Specialist Animal Hospital, Helsingborg, Sweden, during the period December 2013 to August 2016. Inclusion criteria were cats with clinical signs of chronic enteropathy, an initial serum cobalamin concentration ⩽250 pmol/l (reference interval 214-738 pmol/l) and oral treatment with cobalamin tablets. Results Twenty-five cats met the inclusion criteria. The cats were treated with 0.25 mg cyanocobalamin tablets once daily. Serum cobalamin concentration was rechecked 27-94 days after continuous oral cobalamin supplementation. All cats had serum cobalamin concentrations above the reference interval after oral cobalamin supplementation. Median (range) serum cobalamin concentration was 128 pmol/l (111-250 pmol/l) prior to treatment and 2701 pmol/l (738-16,359 pmol/l) after supplementation. This difference was statistically significant ( P <0.0001). Conclusions and relevance Our results suggest that oral cobalamin supplementation is effective in increasing serum cobalamin to supranormal concentrations in cats with hypocobalaminaemia. Thus, oral cobalamin supplementation is a promising alternative to parenteral administration. Prospective comparative studies in cats being treated with parenteral vs oral cobalamin supplementation in a larger number of patients are warranted before oral supplementation can be recommended for routine use.
Find similar cases for your pet
PetCaseFinder finds other peer-reviewed reports of pets with the same symptoms, plus a plain-English summary of what was tried across them.
Search related cases →Original publication on PubMed: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/28128683/