Peer-reviewed veterinary case report
How special diets help diagnose and treat gut problems in dogs
By Ing, Nancy H & Steiner, Joerg M·Published in Advances in experimental medicine and biology·2024·Department of Animal Science, United States·View original on PubMed →
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Original publication title: The Use of Diets in the Diagnosis and Treatment of Common Gastrointestinal Diseases in Dogs and Cats.
- Species:
- dog
Plain-English summary
A dog or cat showing signs of gastrointestinal issues like vomiting, diarrhea, or loss of appetite may need a special diet to help diagnose and treat their condition. Veterinarians often recommend specific diets, such as limited ingredient or hydrolyzed protein diets, to see if symptoms improve over a couple of weeks. If these diets don’t help, other treatments like antibiotics or anti-inflammatory medications might be necessary. For pets with pancreatitis, a low-fat diet can aid recovery, and a new medication called fuzapladib shows promise for more severe cases. Many pets can find relief and improve their health with the right dietary management.
People also search for: dog vomiting treatment · cat diarrhea diet · pancreatitis diet for dogs · chronic gastrointestinal disease in pets · low-fat diet for cats
Abstract
The nutritional health of dogs and cats is important to pet owners around the world. Nutrition is inextricably linked to the health of the gastrointestinal system and vice versa. Gastrointestinal signs, such as vomiting, diarrhea, anorexia, or weight loss, are one of the most common reasons that dog and cat owners make non-routine appointments with veterinarians. Those patients are evaluated systematically to identify and/or rule out the causes of the symptoms. Some causes of chronic diarrhea are within the gastrointestinal tract while others are secondary to pathogenic factors outside the digestive system. Some useful biomarkers of chronic intestinal disease (enteropathy) exist in serum and feces. After determination that the clinical signs are due to primary gastrointestinal disease and that there is no parasitism, specific diets are used for at least two weeks. There are several types of diets for pets with chronic enteropathies. There are limited ingredient diets and hydrolyzed protein diets with reduced levels of allergens. There are also highly digestible and fiber-enhanced diets. Some diets contain probiotics and/or prebiotics. If symptoms do not improve and the patient is stable, a diet from a different class may be tried. For chronic enteropathies, the prognosis is generally good for symptom resolution or at least improvement. However, if interventions with novel diets do not ameliorate the symptoms of chronic enteropathy, then antibiotic, anti-inflammatory, or immunosuppressant therapy or further, more invasive diagnostics such as taking an intestinal biopsy, may be indicated. Pancreatitis is a common gastrointestinal disease in dogs and cats and patients may present with mild to severe disease. Many patients with mild to moderate disease can be successfully treated with early supportive care, including feeding a low-fat diet. A novel pharmaceutical, fuzapladib (Panoquell-CA1) looks very promising for treating more severe forms of acute pancreatitis in dogs. Maintenance on a low-fat diet may prevent pancreatitis in at-risk dogs. Future advances in medicine will allow pet owners and veterinarians to use dietary management to maximize the health of their dogs and cats.
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Search related cases →Original publication on PubMed: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/38625524/