Peer-reviewed veterinary case report
The role of diet in managing inflamatory bowel disease affected dogs: a retrospective cohort study on 76 cases.
- Journal:
- Veterinaria italiana
- Year:
- 2017
- Authors:
- Marchesi, Maria Chiara et al.
- Affiliation:
- Department of Veterinary Medicine · Italy
- Species:
- dog
Plain-English summary
This study looked at how diet can help manage inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) in dogs, which is a long-term condition that causes inflammation in the intestines. Dogs with IBD often show signs like diarrhea, vomiting, and losing weight, but a proper diagnosis requires a special examination of their intestinal tissue. The researchers found that treating dogs with a combination of the medication Prednisone and a specific diet can help reduce inflammation. They discovered that dogs on hydrolyzed protein diets (where proteins are broken down to reduce reactions) showed more improvement than those on novel protein diets (which use new protein sources). Fish was identified as the best protein option during treatment because it is less likely to cause allergic reactions. Overall, the treatment was effective in improving the dogs' condition.
Abstract
The term inflammatory bowel diseases (IBD) refers to a group of idiopathic, chronic intestinal diseases characterized by a diffuse infiltration of inflammatory cells into the lamina propria of the intestine. The pathogenesis of IBD is unknown. The most common signs described are diarrhoea, vomit, and progressive weight loss. In order to make a definitive diagnosis, though, the presence of inflammatory cells infiltration must be evident on histopathologic analysis. The therapeutic approach has 2 main goals: decrease the inflammatory response and remove possible antigenic sources, such as food components or intestinal microflora. Therefore, the most common therapy is the association of Prednisone with a single protein diet, especially when the inflammatory cells infiltration is severe. Another way to reduce the antigenic stimulation is to control the intestinal microflora, so antibiotics and pre/ probiotics may be used. This retrospective study tested and compared the therapeutic value of Prednisone and specific diets, used as a single therapy or combined together. The results show a significative clinical improvement in dogs fed with hydrolized protein diets rather than novel protein diets. Finally, fish is the more reliable source of protein to use during therapy, because of its low ability to trigger an antigenic reaction.
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Search related cases →Original publication: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/29307123/