Avaliação da influência do número de refeições diárias no tratamento do cão diabético
Data
2021-07-22
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A diabetes mellitus é uma das doenças estudada com maior profundidade em pacientes humanos, no entanto, em Medicina Veterinária, a diabetologia carece ainda de muita investigação. Por esse motivo, há ainda muitos aspetos da doença a ser explorados, sendo um deles a influência do número de refeições diárias no tratamento do animal diabético. Apesar das diretrizes atuais do tratamento da diabetes mellitus canina sugerirem o consumo de duas refeições por dia juntamente com a administração de insulina, não existe evidência do benefício do protocolo de alimentação bidiária em relação a outros que envolvam uma maior frequência de refeições. Este trabalho teve como objetivo avaliar se o aumento da frequência alimentar (duas para quatro refeições), num cão diabético, influencia ou não o controlo glicémico. A amostra estudada incluiu cães diabéticos consultados no Hospital Veterinário da Universidade de Gante (Bélgica) cujos ficheiros clínicos foram disponibilizados pelo Serviço de Nutrição Clínica. Foi realizado um estudo observacional retrospetivo que comparou dois grupos de animais: (i) cães alimentados com duas refeições diárias e (ii) cães alimentados com quatro refeições diárias. Os dados clínicos e laboratoriais analisados incluíram o peso corporal do animal, a curva de glicemia, a dose de insulina e as comorbilidades existentes. No que diz respeito à análise das curvas de glicemia e doses de insulina administradas, apesar de existirem diferenças entre os grupos experimentais, estas não foram estatisticamente significativas (p>0,05), indicando que o aumento da frequência alimentar diária não influenciou o controlo glicémico destes animais. Apesar de alguns estudos mencionados neste trabalho sugerirem que existe um melhor controlo glicémico quando se aumenta a frequência alimentar, as nossas conclusões não encontraram tal relação, verdadeira. No entanto, recomenda-se a elaboração de um estudo controlado que poderá demonstrar a utilidade do aumento do número de refeições diárias no tratamento do cão diabético.
Diabetes mellitus is a disease studied in a great depth in humans, however, in veterinary medicine, diabetology still lacks investigation. For this reason, there are still many aspects of the disease’s management to be explored, one of which is the influence of the number of meals in the treatment of the diabetic animal. Although current guidelines for the treatment of canine diabetes suggest the consumption of two meals a day together with insulin administration, there is no evidence of the benefit of this protocol in relation to one with a higher frequency of meals. This study aimed to assess whether or not the increase in feeding frequency influences glycaemic control of the diabetic dog. The sample used included diabetic dogs consulted at the Veterinary Hospital of the University of Ghent (Belgium), whose clinical files were made available by the Clinical Nutrition Service. A retrospective observational study was carried out comparing two groups of animals: (i) dogs fed two meals a day and (ii) dogs fed four meals a day. The clinical and laboratory data analyzed included the animal's live weight, the glycemic curve, the insulin dose and the existing comorbidities. Regarding the analysis of the glycemic curves and insulin doses administered, despite differences between the experimental groups, these were not considered statistically significant (p>0.05), indicating that the increase in daily feeding frequency did not influence the glycemic control of these animals. Although some studies mentioned in this work suggest a better glycemic control associated with a higher feeding frequency, the present study didn’t reach this conclusion. However, a more controlled study should be carried out as it may show the usefulness of increasing the number of meals in the control of the diabetic dog.
Diabetes mellitus is a disease studied in a great depth in humans, however, in veterinary medicine, diabetology still lacks investigation. For this reason, there are still many aspects of the disease’s management to be explored, one of which is the influence of the number of meals in the treatment of the diabetic animal. Although current guidelines for the treatment of canine diabetes suggest the consumption of two meals a day together with insulin administration, there is no evidence of the benefit of this protocol in relation to one with a higher frequency of meals. This study aimed to assess whether or not the increase in feeding frequency influences glycaemic control of the diabetic dog. The sample used included diabetic dogs consulted at the Veterinary Hospital of the University of Ghent (Belgium), whose clinical files were made available by the Clinical Nutrition Service. A retrospective observational study was carried out comparing two groups of animals: (i) dogs fed two meals a day and (ii) dogs fed four meals a day. The clinical and laboratory data analyzed included the animal's live weight, the glycemic curve, the insulin dose and the existing comorbidities. Regarding the analysis of the glycemic curves and insulin doses administered, despite differences between the experimental groups, these were not considered statistically significant (p>0.05), indicating that the increase in daily feeding frequency did not influence the glycemic control of these animals. Although some studies mentioned in this work suggest a better glycemic control associated with a higher feeding frequency, the present study didn’t reach this conclusion. However, a more controlled study should be carried out as it may show the usefulness of increasing the number of meals in the control of the diabetic dog.
Descrição
Dissertação de Mestrado em Medicina Veterinária
Palavras-chave
cão , diabetes mellitus