A Review of Central Venous Pressure and Its Reliability as a Hemodynamic Monitoring Tool in Veterinary Medicine.

OBJECTIVE: To review the current literature regarding central venous pressure (CVP) in veterinary patients pertaining to placement (of central line), measurement, interpretation, use in veterinary medicine, limitations, and controversies in human medicine. ETIOLOGY: CVP use in human medicine is a widely debated topic, as numerous sources have shown poor correlation of CVP measurements to the volume status of a patient. Owing to the ease of placement and monitoring in veterinary medicine, CVP remains a widely used modality for evaluating the hemodynamic status of a patient. A thorough evaluation of the veterinary and human literature should be performed to evaluate the role of CVP measurements in assessing volume status in veterinary patients. DIAGNOSIS: Veterinary patients that benefit from accurate CVP readings include those suffering from hypovolemic or septic shock, heart disease, or renal disease or all of these. Other patients that may benefit from CVP monitoring include high-risk anesthetic patients undergoing major surgery, trending of fluid volume status in critically ill patients, patients with continued shock, and patients that require rapid or large amounts of fluids. THERAPY: The goal of CVP use is to better understand a patient's intravascular volume status, which would allow early goal-directed therapy. PROGNOSIS: CVP would most likely continue to play an important role in the hemodynamic monitoring of the critically ill veterinary patient; however, when available, cardiac output methods should be considered the first choice for hemodynamic monitoring.

Association between outcome and organ system dysfunction in dogs with sepsis: 114 cases (2003-2007).

OBJECTIVE: To determine whether multiple organ dysfunction syndrome (MODS) could be identified in dogs with sepsis secondary to gastrointestinal tract leakage, and whether the number of affected organ systems was significantly associated with mortality rate. DESIGN: Multicenter retrospective case series. ANIMALS: 114 dogs. PROCEDURES: Medical records for dogs treated surgically because of sepsis secondary to gastrointestinal tract leakage between 2003 and 2007 were reviewed. Sepsis was diagnosed on the basis of results of bacterial culture of peritoneal fluid, gross evidence of gastrointestinal tract leakage at surgery, or both. Renal dysfunction was defined as a > or = 0.5 mg/dL increase in serum creatinine concentration after surgery. Cardiovascular dysfunction was defined as hypotension requiring vasopressor treatment. Respiratory dysfunction was defined as a need for supplemental oxygen administration or mechanical ventilation. Hepatic dysfunction was defined as a serum bilirubin concentration > 0.5 mg/dL. Dysfunction of coagulation was defined as prolonged prothrombin time, prolonged partial thromboplastin time, or platelet count < or = 100,000/microL. RESULTS: 89 (78%) dogs had dysfunction of 1 or more organ systems, and 57 (50%) dogs had MODS. Mortality rate increased as the number of dysfunctional organ systems increased. Mortality rate was 70% (40/57) for dogs with MODS and 25% (14/57) for dogs without. CONCLUSIONS AND CLINICAL RELEVANCE: Results indicated that MODS, defined as dysfunction of at least 2 organ systems, can be identified in dogs with sepsis and that organ system dysfunction increased the odds of death.

Canine pericardial effusion: pathophysiology and cause.

Pericardial effusion is the abnormal accumulation of fluid in the pericardial space. As the fluid volume and intrapericardial pressure increase, cardiac tamponade can develop. The most common causes of pericardial effusion include cardiac hemangiosarcoma, idiopathic pericardial effusion, and chemodectoma. Understanding the underlying cause is important in providing treatment recommendations and an accurate prognosis.

Cardiac troponins I and T in dogs with pericardial effusion.

Cardiac troponin I (cTnI) and cardiac troponin T (cTnT) are sensitive and specific markers for myocardial ischemia and necrosis. Dogs with pericardial effusion frequently have myocardial ischemia and necrosis, and these changes are more severe in dogs with hemangiosarcoma (HSA). We investigated the utility of using serum cTnI and cTnT concentrations to identify the idiopathic pericardial effusion from that associated with HSA. Blood samples for measurement of cTnI and cTnT concentrations were collected before pericardiocentesis in 37 dogs with pericardial effusion. Eighteen dogs had a mass consistent with HSA, 6 dogs had idiopathic pericardial effusion, 1 dog had mesothelioma, and 1 dog had a heart base tumor. No final diagnosis was achieved for 11 dogs. Dogs with pericardial effusion had significantly higher serum concentrations of cTnI (P < .001) but not cTnT (P = .16) than did normal dogs. Dogs with HSA had significantly higher concentrations of cTnI (2.77 ng/dL; range: 0.09-47.18 ng/dL) than did dogs with idiopathic pericardial effusion (0.05 ng/dL; range: 0.03-0.09 ng/dL) (P < .001). There was no difference in the concentration of cTnT between dogs with HSA and those with idiopathic pericardial effusion (P = .08). Measurement of cTnI may be useful in helping to distinguish between idiopathic pericardial effusion and pericardial effusion caused by HSA.