Serum Cobalamin (Vitamin B12) and Folate

Control Ranges

Turnaround: 1-2 business days after receipt of samples.

Pancreatic function must be assessed before these results can be interpreted since they may be abnormal in animals with EPI.

Cobalamin: Absorbed in the distal small intestine (specifically in the ileum). Values below the control range are often seen in patients with EPI, bacterial overgrowth in the upper small intestine, or disease affecting the distal small intestine. There is no known significance of values exceeding the control range.

Folate: Absorbed in the proximal small intestine only. Values above the control range are consistent with bacterial overgrowth in the upper small intestine. Values below the control range are consistent with disease affecting the proximal small intestine.

Note: Dietary deficiency of cobalamin and folate is highly improbable and even starvation of several weeks duration does not cause serum cobalamin and folate to become subnormal in dogs. Therefore, subnormal serum concentrations of cobalamin reflect a state of chronic malabsorption and should be treated (treatment protocol).

However, not all intestinal diseases causing malabsorption of vitamins are sufficiently severe or long-standing to deplete body stores of each vitamin. Therefore, not all dogs and cats with intestinal diseases have abnormal test results.Also, not all dogs with intestinal disease have intestinal morphologic abnormalities.

Serum folate shows limited stability at room temperature. Therefore, serum samples for folate analysis should be kept at 4ºC for not longer than 48 hours, but freezing is preferred. Furthermore, folate is light sensitive and samples should be stored in the dark or wrapped in foil.