140 – Essential Wellness 2 + OA

Background:

Essential Wellness 2 + OA includes an inflammation assessment with C-Reactive Protein (CRP) or Haptoglobin (HPT) and Essential Vitamins 2 panel which includes: Vitamin D (25OHD), Cobalamin (Vitamin B12), Folate (Fol) and  Magnesium (Mg).  Apparently healthy animals should not have systemic inflammation.  When present, source of inflammation should be identified and resolved if possible before it becomes chronic.  Chronic inflammation leads to the development of serious diseases including cancer.  Detect occult disease in the otherwise healthy looking pet using the single most effective test for overall health: CRP (dog) or HPT (cat).

Vitamin D, the most important hormone in the body, is responsible for supporting the innate immune system and has a role in disease prevention and management.  Sufficient levels are anti-inflammatory, anti-proliferative, and pro-immunity.  Cobalamin is chiefly response for DNA production as a critical cofactor.  Magnesium is a cofactor in hundreds of enzymatic processes, and when low those reactions are less efficient.  Learn more.   VDI provides patient-specific dosing guidelines for both Vitamin D, B12, and Magnesium. Additionally, screening for early signs of Degenerative Joint Diseases like Osteoarthritis (OA) is done using Hyaluronic Acid (HA).  Joint Disease is typically viewed as an old-pet disease, however the degeneration of joints can start early in life and not present clinically until later.  Using HA to detect when that degeneration begins, allows earlier intervention and more options to slow or stop the progression of joint disease.   Learn more. 

Folate is an essential nutrient involved in numerous biological pathways, acting as a cofactor to ensure they run efficiently and effectively.

Clinical Applications:

1. General Wellness (annual or biannual screening)
2. Apparently Healthy pets
3. Pets at high risk of inflammatory diseases
4. Pet Parents wanting to be proactive in detecting & managing disease

Recommendations:

Health screening using a sensitive inflammatory marker, CRP/HPT, should begin once the pet reaches an adult stage.  Annual testing while apparently healthy is the minimum recommended interval with bi-annual screening being the most effective way to detect the presence of occult disease.

Evaluating essential vitamin levels should start once the dog or cat reaches adult stages and establishes their adult diet.  Once diet has been stable for 3 months, test baseline vitamins and correct any insufficiencies with supplementation, or consider a diet change if values are considerably low.  VDI provides patient-specific dosing guidelines for both Vitamin D and B12.  Recheck intervals are every year once sufficient unless diet or health changes occur.