Peer-reviewed veterinary case report
Severe iron-deficiency anemia from bowel disease in two dogs
By Ristic, J M E & Stidworthy, M F·Published in The Journal of small animal practice·2002·Department of Clinical Veterinary Medicine, United Kingdom·View original on PubMed →
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Original publication title: Two cases of severe iron-deficiency anaemia due to inflammatory bowel disease in the dog.
- Species:
- dog
Plain-English summary
Two dogs were brought in because they were very tired and had low red blood cell counts. Despite not showing obvious signs of stomach issues, one dog had vomited once in the past two weeks. Tests revealed hidden blood in their stool, leading to surgery where biopsies showed inflammation in their intestines. Both dogs were diagnosed with conditions related to inflammatory bowel disease, which caused their severe anemia. After treatment, they were monitored for improvement in their health.
People also search for: dog lethargy and anemia · dog vomiting and low red blood cells · inflammatory bowel disease treatment in dogs
Abstract
Two dogs were referred for investigation of lethargy and anaemia. Preliminary examinations by the referring veterinary surgeons had revealed severe anaemia, which was poorly regenerative. In one case, the anaemia was microcytic and, in the other, it was hypochromic. These findings were suggestive of chronic blood loss anaemia. Neither dog had external signs of gastrointestinal disease, although one had vomited on a single occasion during the two weeks preceding referral. Although both dogs were producing grossly normal faeces, further investigations detected faecal occult blood. Multiple full thickness gastrointestinal biopsies were taken at laparotomy. These showed segmental eosinophilic enteritis of the duodenum and proximal jejunum in one case, and marked chronic lymphocytic gastritis in the other. Both cases illustrate the fact that severe systemic disease can result from gastrointestinal pathology in the absence of clinical signs of gastrointestinal disease.
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Search related cases →Original publication on PubMed: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/11878267/