[pstinard]

Originally Posted by pstinard

I agree, diet could very well be an important factor. Here is a very good scholarly article on diet and food sensitivity in Wheaton Terriers with PLE. (Wheaton Terriers are notoriously susceptible to PLE.)

Food Hypersensitivity Reactions in Soft Coated Wheaten Terriers with Protein-Losing Enteropathy or Protein-Losing Nephropathy or Both: Gastroscopic Food Sensitivity Testing, Dietary Provocation, and Fecal Immunoglobulin E - Vaden - 2008 - Journal of

To summarize, five out of six dogs with PLE had food sensitivities. Diets containing food items that elicited food sensitivity also worsened the PLE symptoms. The researchers were not able to determine cause and effect, but the two are definitely associated.

This kind of ties in with the thread on the Nutriscan test for food sensitivities in dogs. I'm still waiting to hear back from veterinary experts to see if it is a legitimate test for food sensitivities. I HOPE that it is, because if food sensitivities turn out to be a cause of PLE, and if the Nutriscan test really works, then a lot of pain and suffering could be prevented. Right now, I'm keeping an open mind and waiting for more evidence.

I just looked at the full article, and this is in the Introduction:

"Food hypersensitivity reactions cause enteritis of varying severity, including PLE, in humans and dogs."

That looks like a smoking gun to me.