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. 2022 May;36(3):1057-1065.
doi: 10.1111/jvim.16416. Epub 2022 Apr 14.

Effect of diet change in healthy dogs with subclinical cardiac biomarker or echocardiographic abnormalities

Dana Haimovitz  1 , Michelle Vereb  1 , Lisa Freeman  2 , Robert Goldberg  3 , Darleen Lessard  3 , John Rush  2 , Darcy Adin  1
Affiliations

Effect of diet change in healthy dogs with subclinical cardiac biomarker or echocardiographic abnormalities

Dana Haimovitz et al. J Vet Intern Med. 2022 May.

Abstract

Background: A recent study showed higher high-sensitivity cardiac troponin I (hs-cTnI) concentrations in healthy dogs eating grain-free (GF) compared to those eating grain-inclusive (GI) diets.

Hypothesis/objectives: Healthy dogs with subclinical cardiac abnormalities eating GF diets at baseline will show improvements in cardiac biomarkers and echocardiographic variables after diet change, whereas healthy dogs eating GI diets at baseline will not improve.

Animals: Twenty healthy dogs with subclinical cardiac abnormalities (12 Golden Retrievers, 5 Doberman Pinschers, 3 Miniature Schnauzers).

Methods: This prospective study included dogs with increased hs-cTnI or N-terminal pro-B-type natriuretic peptide (NT-proBNP) concentrations, or echocardiographic abnormalities. Mixed modeling was used to evaluate echocardiographic, hs-cTnI, and NT-proBNP differences between groups (GF or GI diet at baseline) over time (1 y after diet change).

Results: Ten GF and 10 GI dogs were evaluated. There were statistically significant time: group interactions for hs-cTnI (P = .02) and normalized left ventricular internal systolic diameter (LVIDsN; P = .02), with GF dogs showing larger decreases in these variables than GI dogs. Median (range) hs-cTnI (ng/mL) for GF dogs was 0.141 (0.012-0.224) at baseline and 0.092 (0.044-0.137) at 1 y, and for GI dogs was 0.051 (0.016-0.195) at baseline and 0.060 (0.022-0.280) at 1 y. Median LVIDsN for GF dogs was 1.01 (0.70-1.30) at baseline and 0.87 (0.79-1.24) at 1 y, and for GI dogs was 1.05 (0.84-1.21) at baseline and 1.10 (0.85-1.28) at 1 y.

Conclusions and clinical importance: Decreased hs-cTnI and LVIDsN in GF dogs after diet change supports reversibility of these subclinical myocardial abnormalities.

Keywords: NT-proBNP; grain-free; hs-cTnI; nutritional dilated cardiomyopathy; troponin.

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Conflict of interest statement

Dr. Adin acknowledges research support from Nestle Purina PetCare and is a consultant and sponsored lecturer for Ceva Animal Health and Boehringer Ingelheim. Dr. Freeman has received research or residency funding from, given sponsored lectures for, or provided professional services to Aratana Therapeutics, Elanco, Guiding Stars Licensing Co, LLC, Hill's Pet Nutrition, Nestlé Purina PetCare, P&G Petcare (now Mars), and Royal Canin. Dr. Rush has received funding from, given sponsored lectures for, or provided professional services to Aratana Therapeutics, Elanco, Hill's Pet Nutrition, Nestlé Purina PetCare, Royal Canin, IDEXX and Boehringer Ingelheim. Ms. Haimovitz is a student representative for Nutramax Laboratories, Inc. Drs. Goldberg and Vereb, and Ms. Lessard do not report conflicts of interest. The conflicts of interest reported by the authors did not influence data collection, data interpretation, or manuscript preparation.

Figures

FIGURE 1
FIGURE 1
The flow diagram illustrates the enrollment of dogs, reasons for exclusion, reasons for attrition, number of statistically evaluable cases, and the breeds for each of these categories
FIGURE 2
FIGURE 2
Median high sensitivity cardiac troponin I (hs‐cTnI) concentrations are shown at each time point after diet change for both diet groups. (◦) Grain‐free, (▪) grain‐inclusive. P = .26 between groups, P = .30 over time, P = .02 for time: group interaction
FIGURE 3
FIGURE 3
(A) Median normalized left ventricular internal diameter in systole (LVIDsN) results are shown at each time point after diet change for both diet groups. (◦) Grain‐free, (▪) grain‐inclusive. P = .38 between groups, P = .25 over time, P = .02 for time: group interaction. (B) Median fractional shortening (%) results are shown at each time point after diet change for both diet groups. (◦) Grain‐free, (▪) grain‐inclusive. P = .83 between groups, P = .75 over time, P = .01 for time: group interaction
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