Severe pericardial effusion in a cat with peritoneopericardial diaphragmatic hernia and incarcerated hepatic sarcoma.

Case summary: A 4-year-old female neutered domestic longhair cat was presented at a referral hospital for dyspnoea with a history of suspected pleural effusion. Thoracic ultrasonography demonstrated a large-volume pericardial effusion causing cardiac tamponade and a cystic mass within the pericardium. CT revealed a peritoneopericardial diaphragmatic hernia (PPDH) caused by a defect of the ventral diaphragm. Herniated contents consisted of the right lateral and caudate liver lobes, and an associated cystic hepatic mass. Ventral midline coeliotomy was performed for herniorrhaphy and partial pericardiectomy, together with lobectomy of the incarcerated liver mass. Histopathology and immunohistochemistry diagnosed a poorly differentiated hepatic sarcoma with inflammation and remodelling in the adjacent incarcerated liver parenchyma. The patient developed metastatic sarcoma 2 months after surgery and was euthanased as a result. Relevance and novel information: Pericardial effusion causing cardiac tamponade is a previously unreported sequelae to PPDH in cats. Reports on the presence of malignancy in incarcerated liver are scarce and the location is not typical for a sarcoma in this species.

Clinical findings and assessment of factors associated with survival in dogs presenting with hyperbilirubinaemia: 115 cases in Victoria, Australia (2015-2020).

Introduction: Hyperbilirubinaemia is an important clinicopathological finding in canine medicine. The objectives of this study were to describe the clinical presentation and outcome of dogs with hyperbilirubinaemia; also to identify factors associated with survival. Materials and methods: Retrospective study of dogs with hyperbilirubinaemia from two referral centres in South Australia (2015-2020). Signalment, clinical signs, clinicopathological data, diagnosis and outcome were obtained from searching clinical records. Univariable analysis and logistic regression modelling were used to compare outcomes and overall survival. Results: A total of 115 cases were included. The most common clinical signs were vomiting (63.5%), anorexia (62.6%), lethargy (55.7%) and pyrexia (18.3%). Pre-hepatic icterus was diagnosed in 18 cases (15.7%), hepatic icterus in 51 cases (44.3%) and post-hepatic icterus in 42 cases (36.5%). The median survival time across all cases was 40 days (95% confidence interval [CI]: 9-126 days). There was an increased risk of death in dogs with serum bilirubin greater than 60 µmol/L at diagnosis (odds ratio [OR] = 3.55; 95% CI: 1.53-8.22; p-value = 0.003) and in dogs with pre-hepatic icterus compared to hepatic (OR = 4.35; 95% CI: 1.18-16.0; p-value = 0.027) and post-hepatic icterus (OR = 6.52; 95% CI: 1.67-25.5; p-value = 0.007). Conclusions: Pre-hepatic icterus was associated with a significantly higher risk of death than hepatic and post-hepatic icterus. Serum bilirubin >60 µmol/L at diagnosis was associated with a significantly shorter median survival time. This cut-off may be useful in discussions with owners regarding pursuing further diagnostic investigation and treatment. Further prospective studies are needed to prove the validity of this cut-off.

Longitudinal Survey of Fecal Microbiota in Healthy Dogs Administered a Commercial Probiotic.

The aim of this longitudinal microbiome study was to investigate the effects of a commercially available veterinary synbiotic product (Blackmore's® Paw DigestiCare 60™) on the fecal microbiome of healthy dogs using 16S rRNA gene microbial profiling. Fifteen healthy, privately-owned dogs participated in a 2-week trial administration of the product. Fecal samples were collected at different time points, including baseline (prior to treatment), during administration and after discontinuation of product. Large intra- and inter-individual variation was observed throughout the study, but microbiome composition at higher phylogenetic levels, alpha and beta diversity were not significantly altered after 2 weeks of probiotic administration, suggesting an absence of probiotic impact on microbial diversity. Administration of the synbiotic preparation did, however, result in transient increases in probiotic species from Enterococacceae and Streptococacceae families as well as an increase in Fusobacteria; with the fecal microbiota partially reverting to its baseline state 3-weeks after cessation of probiotic administration.