Low vitamin D status is associated with anaemia in hospitalised cats.

BACKGROUND: The major physiological role of vitamin D has traditionally been considered to be the regulation of calcium homeostasis and maintenance of skeletal health. However, there is increasing evidence that vitamin D influences a wider range of physiological processes including erythropoiesis. Vitamin D (25-hydroxyvitamin D, 25(OH)D) deficiency concentrations have been associated with anaemia in human beings. In contrast, the relationship between vitamin D status and erythropoiesis has not been investigated in cats. METHODS: Clinical records of cats consecutively presenting between November 2013 and February 2015 were reviewed. For each cat, data including sex, age, breed, serum albumin and creatinine concentrations, and appetite scores were extracted. A multivariable linear regression model was constructed to examine the relationship between 25(OH)D concentrations and these variables. RESULTS: Cats with anaemia had significantly lower 25(OH)D concentrations (median 49.5 nmol/l, n=31) than cats with packed cell volume above the lower limit of the reference range (median 109.0 nmol/l, n=130) (P<0.001). A binary logistic regression found that red blood cell count and mean corpuscular volume were negatively correlated with serum 25(OH)D concentrations (P<0.001 and P=0.007, respectively). CONCLUSION: Vitamin D (25(OH)D) concentration is positively associated with red blood cell count and mean corpuscular volume in cats with a wide range of different illnesses.

Investigation of the efficacy of a dietetic food in the management of chronic enteropathies in dogs.

BACKGROUND: Chronic enteropathies (CEs) are a common cause of morbidity in dogs. CEs are diagnosed in dogs with chronic gastrointestinal clinical signs (>3 weeks), inflammatory changes on intestinal biopsies and where no other underlying cause is determined based on a thorough, standardised diagnostic work-up. Based on response to therapy, CEs are subclassified into food-responsive, antibiotic-responsive or steroid-responsive enteropathies. A significant proportion of dogs with a CE are food-responsive; however, there are limited peer-reviewed publications describing the clinical efficacy of the commercially available diets used to treat CE. METHODS: In this study, the authors evaluated the response of 15 dogs with a CE to a commercially available dietetic food (Hill's Prescription Diet i/d Sensitive Canine Dry). The dogs underwent a standard diagnostic evaluation and did not receive concurrent anthelmintic, antibiotic, glucocorticoid or gastroprotectant therapies. The clinical efficacy of the dietary treatment was assessed by comparing the Canine Inflammatory Bowel Disease Activity Index (CIBDAI) before and a median of 13 days after dietary therapy. RESULTS: The authors found that the CIBDAI significantly decreased following the introduction of the dietetic food (median CIBDAI score pretreatment 9, post-treatment 2; P<0.0005). CONCLUSION: This study demonstrates that this dietetic food can be used to successfully manage CE in dogs.

Minimally invasive treatment of sino-nasal aspergillosis in dogs.

BACKGROUND: Sino-nasal aspergillosis is a common nasal disease in dogs. Recommended treatment protocols typically involve trephination of the frontal sinuses or the use of an antifungal solution instilled into the frontal sinus under anesthesia, both of which have associated morbidity and complications. OBJECTIVES: To assess a minimally-invasive topical treatment protocol for sino-nasal aspergillosis in dogs. ANIMALS: Twelve client-owned dogs diagnosed with sino-nasal aspergillosis that completed recommended treatment. METHODS: Medical records were retrospectively reviewed to identify dogs with sino-nasal aspergillosis that received treatment. Fungal plaques were manually debrided and irrigated via frontal sinuscopy in 12 dogs that then were treated topically with 1% topical clotrimazole cream. Irrigation and topical medication application was achieved using a catheter placed retrograde directly into the frontal sinuses using the Seldinger technique over a guidewire, thereby avoiding the need for frontal sinus trephination. Invasion into the calvarium was recorded before treatment but was not considered a criterion for exclusion. Debridement and cream deposition was repeated every 2 weeks as needed until negative culture and histopathologic findings were obtained. RESULTS: All dogs were cured (negative results for Aspergillus on endoscopy, fungal culture, and histopathology) with a median of 2 treatments. Treatments were well tolerated, with minimal adverse effects reported. Three dogs had evidence of erosion into the calvarium on computed tomography imaging. CONCLUSIONS AND CLINICAL IMPORTANCE: This protocol appears to be an effective and well-tolerated minimally invasive treatment for sino-nasal aspergillosis, including in dogs with erosion into the calvarium. Only mild adverse effects were noted.

Fanconi Syndrome in Irish Wolfhound Siblings.

Three juvenile male Irish wolfhound littermates presented with marked polyuria and polydipsia. The four female siblings were apparently unaffected. Diagnostic testing revealed glucosuria with normoglycemia, generalized aminoaciduria, hypokalemia and metabolic acidosis consistent with Fanconi syndrome. Renal ultrasonographic and histologic findings are presented. Cases were managed with a supplementation regimen based on a treatment protocol for Fanconi syndrome in basenjis. These dogs did not have angular limb deformities as documented previously in juvenile canine siblings with Fanconi syndrome. Fanconi syndrome has not been previously described in Irish wolfhound siblings.