Special Veterinary Pathology

Lipids and carbohydrates

LIPID AND CARBOHYDRATES

Deficiency

• Deficiency of fat probably does not exist in domestic animals
• Dietary deficiency of essential fatty acids is rare
• Deficiency occurs when absorption of fat is impaired in biliary or pancreatic disease
• Dietary supplementation with fats occasionally results in improvement of certain skin disorders
• Earliest change is dryness, followed by erythema, alopecia, scaling, ulceration and failure of wounds to heal properly
• Microscopically, the epidermis is thickened, due to an increase in cells and hyperkeratosis
• Hair follicles become hypercellular and plugged with keratin, and sebaceous glands increase in size
• Dermis becomes edematous and infiltrated with mononuclear cells
• In cats, fatty charge of the liver and kidneys develops with mineralization of the adrenal

Carbohydrates

• Carbohydrates or, in the case of ruminants, roughage provide a major dietary source of energy; however, no specific carbohydrate deficiency state occurs
• Dogs and cats do not even require a dietary source
• Certain carbodydrate sources lead to enteropathy
• This is well known with gluten (Wheat) enteropathy in humans
• Gluten enteropathy has also been identified in Irish Setters, breed of dogs and is characterized by villus atrophy and intraepithelial lymphocytic infiltration.
• Reduction in available carbohydrates is a precipitating factor of ketosis in cattle and of pregnancy toxemia in sheep and cattle