Extended Evaluation
An extended nutritional assessment is an opportunity to gather a more comprehensive nutritional history and pursue clinical diagnostics.
Table 5
Examples of Clinical Diagnostics for an Extended Nutritional Assessment
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Complete blood count |
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Serum biochemistry |
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Urinalysis |
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Thyroid screen |
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Fecal flotation and antigen testing (e.g., Giardia) |
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Urine protein:creatinine ratio* |
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Vitamin B12 (cobalamin)* |
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Folate* |
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PLI, species specific* |
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TLI, species specific* |
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25-hydroxyvitamin D* |
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Whole blood or plasma taurine* |
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Plasma amino acids* |
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Abdominal and/or thoracic imaging* |
*If indicated.
PLI, pancreatic lipase immunoreactivity; TLI, trypsin-like immunoreactivity.
An extended nutritional assessment is an opportunity to gather a more comprehensive nutritional history and pursue clinical diagnostics (Table 5). The specifics of an extended assessment will depend on abnormal physical exam findings, the information obtained through the screening nutritional history, and identification of specific nutritional risk factors. The development of nutritional recommendations provides an opportunity for the skills of the entire veterinary team to be utilized.
