Variations in total bile acid concentration in serum of dogs after a test meal

The purpose of this study was to examine the variations in total serum bile acid (SBA) concentration following oral administration of corn oil (3.0 ml per kg body weight) to six fasted healthy dogs using a previously validated automated method (JENSEN, 1991) for the determination of SBA concentration. The preprandial SBA concentration was 2.22 mumol/l (0.64-6.41 mumol/l) (median, 0.025-0.975 fractiles). In the 2-6 hours postprandial period, all the SBA concentrations were significantly different from the preprandial value, but not significantly different from each other. For the total 2-6 hours postprandial period the SBA concentration was 7.89 mumol/l (1.39-22.24 mumol/l). From these results it may be suggested that the reference range for the preprandial SBA concentration in dogs is 0.64-6.41 mumol/l, and that the reference range for the postprandial SBA concentration in a blood sample obtained 2 hours after oral administration of corn oil is 1.39-22.24 mumol/l.