Peer-reviewed veterinary case report
Oral vitamin B12 helps dogs with chronic gut disease and low B12
By Toresson, L et al.·Published in Journal of veterinary internal medicine·2016·Department of Equine and Small Animal Medicine·View original on PubMed →
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Original publication title: Oral Cobalamin Supplementation in Dogs with Chronic Enteropathies and Hypocobalaminemia.
- Species:
- dog
Plain-English summary
A group of 51 dogs with chronic digestive issues and low vitamin B12 levels were treated with oral cobalamin (vitamin B12) tablets. After starting the treatment, all the dogs showed significant improvement, with their vitamin B12 levels returning to normal. The average increase in vitamin B12 levels was substantial, indicating that oral supplementation was effective. This suggests that giving vitamin B12 by mouth can help dogs with these health problems, but more research is needed to confirm this as a standard treatment option.
People also search for: dog chronic digestive issues treatment · low vitamin B12 in dogs · oral cobalamin for dogs
Abstract
BACKGROUND: Cobalamin deficiency is commonly associated with chronic enteropathies (CE) in dogs and current treatment protocols recommend parenteral supplementation. In humans, several studies have reported equal efficacy of oral and parenteral cobalamin administration of cobalamin. OBJECTIVES: To retrospectively evaluate whether oral cobalamin supplementation can restore normocobalaminemia in dogs with CE and hypocobalaminemia. ANIMALS: Fifty-one client-owned dogs with various signs of CE and hypocobalaminemia. MATERIAL AND METHODS: Retrospective study based on a computerized database search for dogs treated at Evidensia Specialist Animal Hospital, Helsingborg, Sweden during January 2012-March 2014. Inclusion criteria were dogs with signs of CE, an initial serum cobalamin ≤270 ng/L (reference interval: 234-811 ng/L) and oral treatment with cobalamin tablets. Serum cobalamin for follow-up was analyzed 20-202 days after continuous oral cobalamin supplementation started. RESULTS: All dogs became normocobalaminemic with oral cobalamin supplementation. The mean increase in serum cobalamin concentration after treatment was 794 ± 462 ng/L. Serum cobalamin concentrations were significantly higher after supplementation (mean 1017 ± 460 ng/L; P < .0001) than at baseline (mean 223 ± 33 ng/L). CONCLUSION AND CLINICAL IMPORTANCE: Our results suggest that oral cobalamin supplementation is effective in normalizing serum cobalamin concentrations in dogs with CE. Prospective studies comparing cellular cobalamin status in dogs being treated with parenteral versus oral cobalamin supplementation are warranted before oral supplementation can be recommended for routine supplementation.
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Search related cases →Original publication on PubMed: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/26648590/