Authors
, , , , , and
Abstract
Objective—To determine the level of clinical agreement between 2 methods for the measurement of resting energy expenditure (REE).
Design—Prospective case series.
Animals—77 dogs.
Procedure—Oxygen consumption (
O2) and CO2 production
(CO2) were measured with an open-flow indirect
calorimeter in healthy (n = 10) and ill (67) dogs.
Measurements were collected at 3 time periods on 2
days. The O2 and the CO2 measurements were then
used to calculate the REE values.
Results—Mean values of measured (MREE) and predicted (PREE) REEs in healthy dogs and a dog with medical illnesses or trauma were not significantly different. There was a significant difference on day 2 between the MREE and PREE in the group of dogs recovering from major surgery. More importantly, there was significant variation between the PREE and MREE on an individual-dog basis. The PREE only agreed to within ± 20% of the MREE in 51% to 57% of the dogs.
Conclusions and Clinical Relevance—The level of agreement between these two methods for determining the 24-hour REE was poor in individual dogs. The level of disagreement between the 2 methods indicates that these methods may not be used interchangeably in a clinical setting. Measurement of REE by use of indirect calorimetry may be the only reliable method of determining REE in an individual ill or healthy dog. (J Am Vet Med Assoc 2004;225:58–64)
