Laryngeal silicone stent as a treatment option for laryngeal paralysis in dogs: a preliminary study of 6 cases.

BACKGROUND: Laryngeal paralysis is a common idiopathic degenerative neurological disease in older medium-to-large breed dogs, with surgical correction of the obstruction being the treatment of choice. OBJECTIVES: This study evaluated the use of laryngeal silicone stents to treat canine laryngeal paralysis in dogs where classic surgical treatment was not accepted by the owners. METHODS: Dogs diagnosed with laryngeal paralysis, for which the owners refused arytenoid lateralization surgery as a first-line treatment, were treated with laryngeal silicone stents. RESULTS: Six dogs with bilateral laryngeal paralysis were included in the study. All dogs showed improvement in clinical signs immediately after the procedure. No clinical signs or radiographic changes were noted in four out of six dogs in the follow-up visit performed 1 wk later. One dog was suspected of aspirating water while drinking, but the signs disappeared after repositioning the stent. Another dog had a relapse of stridor due to caudal migration of the stent. This dog underwent arytenoid lateralization surgery because larger stents are not commercially available. At the time of writing, between seven and 13 mon after stent placement, no significant incidents have occurred in four dogs, and all owners report a satisfactory quality of life. CONCLUSIONS: Laryngeal silicone stenting is an interesting alternative for treating dogs with acquired laryngeal paralysis when the owners refuse classic arytenoid lateralization surgery. Furthermore, stent placement can be a temporary solution to stabilize these dogs until a permanent surgical treatment can be performed.

Autologous blood patch pleurodesis treatment for persistent pneumothorax: A case series of five dogs (2016-2020).

Background: Autologous blood patch pleurodesis (ABP) has been described as a treatment for persistent pneumothorax in the dogs and among humans. Although the treatment of persistent or recurring spontaneous pneumothorax is classically surgical, it cannot always be performed due to medical or financial constraints. This case series describes the clinical course, etiology, and outcome of five dogs with persistent pneumothorax treated with ABP. Case Description: Five client-owned dogs with persistent pneumothorax are presented. Two dogs had pneumothorax due to congenital pulmonary bullae, one due to thoracic trauma, another due to lungworm infection, and a fifth with unknown cause in the context of a relapsing subcutaneous haemangiosarcoma. Around 5 ml/kg of non-coagulated blood was aseptically collected from the jugular vein and injected via a thoracotomy tube immediately into the pleural cavity of dogs with persistent pneumothorax. The procedure was successful in four out of five dogs after one procedure, therefore a success rate of 80%. A repeat of the pleurodesis was attempted in the fifth dog, 12 hours after the first injection due to the recollection of the pneumothorax. Still, the dog died during anesthesia in preparation for the procedure. No complications that could be directly linked to ABP occurred. Conclusion: ABP is a simple, rapid, inexpensive, effective, and safe procedure that can be useful for treating persistent pneumothorax that does not respond to conservative treatment and where surgical exploration cannot be carried out. Pneumothorax secondary due to trauma and congenital pulmonary bullae seem to respond well to ABP.

Imaging findings in 14 dogs and 3 cats with lobar emphysema.

BACKGROUND: Lobar emphysema in dogs and cats is caused by bronchial collapse during expiration and subsequent air trapping. Congenital causes such as bronchial cartilage defects or acquired causes such as compressive neoplastic lesions have been reported. Morbidity results from hyperinflation of the affected lung lobe and compression of adjacent thoracic structures. OBJECTIVE: To describe patient characteristics and imaging findings in dogs and cats with lobar emphysema. ANIMALS: Fourteen dogs and 3 cats with lobar emphysema diagnosed by imaging findings were retrospectively identified from veterinary referral hospital populations over a 10-year period. METHODS: Cases that included thoracic radiography, thoracic computed tomography (CT), or both were included. All images were reviewed by a European College of Veterinary Diagnostic Imaging diplomate. Relevant case information included signalment, clinical findings, treatment, and histopathology where available. RESULTS: Ten of 17 (59%) patients were presented for evaluation of dyspnea and 6 (35%) for coughing. Eleven (65%) patients were <3 years of age. The right middle lung lobe was affected in 12 cases (71%) and multiple lobes were affected in 7 cases (41%). Congenital lobar emphysema was suspected in 14 cases (82%). CONCLUSION AND CLINICAL IMPORTANCE: Lung lobe hyperinflation, atelectasis of nonaffected lung lobes, mediastinal shift, and thoracic wall and diaphragmatic wall deformation were common findings. Lobar or multilobar emphysema should be considered in patients with dyspnea or coughing, particularly younger patients. Although radiography is useful, CT provides better detail. In older patients, acquired causes of bronchial compression should be considered.

Effects of storage conditions on results for quantitative and qualitative evaluation of proteins in canine urine.

OBJECTIVE To investigate effects of storage conditions on the canine urine protein-to-creatinine ratio (UPC) and on SDS-agarose gel electrophoresis (AGE) of urinary proteins. SAMPLE Urine specimens from 20 proteinuric (UPC > 0.5) and 20 nonproteinuric (UPC ≤ 0.2) dogs. PROCEDURES UPC and SDS-AGE were performed on urine specimens stored at room temperature (20°C) and 4°C for up to 5 days and at -20° and -80°C for up to 360 days; some specimens were subjected to 3 freeze-thaw cycles. Results were compared with those obtained for fresh urine specimens. RESULTS UPC was not affected by storage at room temperature or by freezing. A decrease in UPC was observed for specimens from nonproteinuric dogs after 5 days at 4°C (10%) and from both groups after 90 days at -20° and -80°C (≤ 20% and ≤ 15%, respectively). The SDS-AGE profiles revealed no visual changes regardless of duration of storage for specimens stored at room temperature, 4°C, and -80°C, except for 1 profile after 360 days at -80°C. Repeated freeze-thaw cycles did not affect SDS-AGE profiles. Appearance or strengthening of high-molecular-weight bands that could alter interpretation was evident in SDS-AGE profiles after storage at -20°C for ≥ 15 days (31/40 dogs). CONCLUSIONS AND CLINICAL RELEVANCE Storage of urine at -20° or -80°C for up to 1 year influenced the UPC without affecting clinical interpretation. Storage of urine specimens at -20°C impaired visual analysis of SDS-AGE. When SDS-AGE cannot be performed on fresh or recently refrigerated urine specimens, storage at -80°C is recommended.

Renal abscesses in cats: six cases.

Case series summary Six cats were diagnosed with renal abscesses. Common clinical findings were lethargy, dehydration, abdominal pain and nephromegaly. Fever was noted in half of the cases. Diagnosis was established by ultrasonography, cytological examination and bacterial culture of abscess aspirates. At least one possible contributing factor could be identified in all cases. Antibiotics were consistently used and in two cats the abscess was surgically drained. The short-term outcome was fair but the long-term outcome was dependent on the underlying condition. Relevance and novel information The results of this small case series suggest that renal abscess should be considered when nephromegaly and/or abdominal discomfort are noted. Diagnosis of renal abscess is straightforward when ultrasonography and fine-needle aspirate analysis can be performed. Medical treatment is assumed to be preferable but surgical treatment may be warranted on a case-by-case basis. Given that almost every affected cat was diagnosed with at least one comorbidity, a thorough evaluation is recommended for all cats with renal abscesses.

Spurious reticulocyte profiles in a dog with babesiosis.

A 9-year-old, female Maltese dog was referred to the Veterinary School of Toulouse with a 2-day history of anorexia and weakness. On clinical examination, the dog had hyperthermia (39.7°C), abdominal discomfort, and polypnea. Significant laboratory findings included pigmenturia, hyperbilirubinemia, hypercreatininemia, hyperfibrinogenemia, abnormal Snap canine pancreas-specific lipase, and pancytopenia with a nonregenerative anemia. A peripheral blood smear revealed numerous intraerythrocytic large Babesia but no polychromasia. There was a discrepancy between the absolute automated reticulocyte count (Sysmex reticulocyte count: 60 × 109 /L; RI 19.4-150.1 × 109 /L) and the manual reticulocyte count (3.6 × 109 /L) as well as the absence of polychromasia. The optical red blood cell scattergram showed an abnormal isolated reticulocyte cluster at the location of low-fluorescence ratio cells. These findings were interpreted as erythrocytes parasitized by large Babesia. The discrepancy between the Sysmex reticulocyte count and the manual reticulocyte count has been reported previously in people with falciparum malaria and numerous intra-erythrocytic Plasmodium falciparum organisms. This spurious reticulocyte profile and reticulocyte count were observed with the Sysmex XT-2000iV and the ProCyte using the same fluorescent dye polymethine but not with the LaserCyte using new methylene blue which does not stain Babesia organisms on a blood smear performed for manual reticulocyte counting.

Feline reference intervals for the Sysmex XT-2000iV and the ProCyte DX haematology analysers in EDTA and CTAD blood specimens.

Laser-based haematology analysers are routinely used in veterinary clinical pathology laboratories, and are available to practitioners. However, feline haematological reference intervals (RIs) determined according to international recommendations are, to our knowledge, not available. Furthermore, platelet count RI is difficult to establish in cats because of the frequent occurrence of platelet aggregation in blood specimens. The purpose of this study was to establish feline haematological RIs with the Sysmex XT-2000iV and ProCyte DX analysers, in ethylenediamine tetra-acetic acid (EDTA) and in citrate, theophylline, adenosine and dipyridamole (CTAD), which is a combination of anticoagulants limiting platelet aggregation. Blood specimens from 120 healthy cats were analysed in duplicate, and the degree of platelet aggregation was assessed on blood smears. After exclusion of inadequate specimens, 81 sets of results (from 44 males and 37 females, aged from 6 to 116 months) were available for the determination of RIs by the non-parametric method. The effects of the anticoagulant, analyser and aggregation score were assessed. When the aggregation effect was significant, the RIs were determined using the subgroup of blood specimens with no or little aggregation. The effects of sex, age and weight were also investigated, but were moderate. The different RIs obtained with the Sysmex XT-2000iV and ProCyte DX analysers, and the two anticoagulants, were very similar to previous RIs established in EDTA with the ADVIA 120, another laser-based analyser, except for the platelet count in CTAD specimens. Its lower reference limit was higher in CTAD vs EDTA specimens, which confirms the interest in this anticoagulant in cats.