Surgical Stabilisation of a Coxofemoral Luxation in a Northern Goshawk (Accipter gentilis) with Transarticular Pinning.

A 3-year-old male northern goshawk (Accipiter gentilis) used in falconry for hunting was diagnosed with a craniodorsal coxofemoral luxation of the left leg after an unsuccessful hunting flight. Closed reduction in the dislocation was unsuccessful and the hip joint reluxed again with slight abduction of the limb. An open surgical reduction with a transarticular stabilization using a normogradely inserted Kirschner wire was performed. The implant was removed surgically after five weeks. After about seven weeks, the owner saw no abnormalities in the loading of the limbs, and the goshawk was successfully used for hunting after nine months in the next hunting season.

[Vergleichende Bestimmung von Gerinnungsparametern in Blutproben verschiedener Wild- und Ziervogelspezies]. / Comparative aspects of blood coagulation measurements in various wild and captive bird species.

OBJECTIVE: Information about the influence of species variety or diseases on coagulation values in avian blood is rare. The aim of this study was to assess the influence of species on measurements of coagulation parameters in avian plasma samples using commercially available reagents and to investigate potential influences of selected diseases on clotting times. MATERIAL AND METHODS: Prothrombin time (PT), activated partial thromboplastin time (aPTT) and thrombin time (TT) were measured in citrated plasma of healthy individuals collected from eight different wild and captive avian species applying currently commercially available reagents prepared for use in humans, which were preselected in preliminary studies. The same parameters were tested in plasma samples from birds affected by aspergillosis, atherosclerosis, neoplasia and traumata. RESULTS: PT and aPTT showed a high interspecies variety. Irrespective of species, aPTTs were extremely long and partially exceeded the measurement range limit. Minor variations between species were seen in TT measurements. Clotting times obtained from birds affected by aspergillosis, atherosclerosis and neoplasia were not significantly different when compared to healthy birds. Plasma obtained from traumatised individuals showed significantly shorter PT and aPTT than that in healthy birds. CONCLUSION AND CLINICAL RELEVANCE: Differences between species must be considered in diagnostic coagulation measurements in avian blood. Regardless of the avian species, aPTT measurements on avian samples appear to be of limited value. Lower PT and aPTT values reflect coagulation activation in traumatised birds.

Methodical aspects of blood coagulation measurements in birds applying commercial reagents--a pilot study.

The aim of this study was to examine the suitability of commercially available reagents for measurements of coagulation parameters in citrated plasma from birds. Therefore, plasma samples of 17 healthy donor birds of different species were used to determine prothrombin time (PT), activated partial thromboplastin time (aPTT) and thrombin time (TT) applying various commercial reagents which are routinely used in coagulation diagnostics in humans and mammals. A PT reagent based on human placental thromboplastin yielded not only shorter clotting times than a reagent containing recombinant human tissue factor (median 49 vs. 84 s), but also showed a minor range of distribution of values (43-55 s vs. 30-147 s, minimum-maximum, n = 5 turkeys). An aPTT reagent containing kaolin and phospholipids of animal origin delivered the shortest clotting times and the lowest range of variation in comparison to three other reagents of different composition. However, even when this reagent was used, aPTTs were partially extremely long (> 200 s). Thrombin time was 38 s (28-57 s, n = 5 chicken) when measured with bovine thrombin at a final concentration of 2 IU thrombin/ ml. Coefficients of variation for within-run precision analysis (20 repetitions) of PT was 8.0% and 4.7% for aPTT measurements using selected reagents of mammalian origin. In conclusion, of the commercially available reagents tested, a PT reagent based on human placental thromboplastin and an aPTT reagent including rabbit brain phospholipid and kaolin, show some promise for potential use in birds.