Late abscess formation caused by silk suture following hysterectomy in a female dog.

A 5-year-old female cross-breed dog was presented for a one-month history of lethargy, poor appetite and weight loss. A hysterectomy had been performed 2 years ago. Abdominal palpation revealed a mid-abdominal mass and haematological analysis showed leucocytosis with left shift. On abdominal radiographs, a 9 cm in diameter soft tissue opacity mass ventral to the colon and caudal to the left kidney was observed. The abdominal ultrasonography revealed a mass well circumscribed, with a hyperechoic capsule and hypoechoic center with echoic debris. The presumptive diagnosis was an abscess due to foreign body granuloma. Laparotomy was performed and a mass close to the left ovary was found. Adhesions and residues of the suture material were observed close to the right ovary and the uterine body stump. The mass, both ovaries and adhesions were removed. On cut section of the mass two cavities were observed. The small one contained three embedded silk suture residues. Histopathological examination confirmed the diagnosis of a chronic abscess caused by silk suture.

Flow velocity profile of the fetal aortic isthmus through normal gestation.

Experimental and clinical evidence have demonstrated that an increase in resistance to placental blood flow causes changes in aortic isthmic diastolic flow profile before any significant modification is observed in umbilical artery Doppler waveforms. To identify these abnormal flow profiles, the objective of this study was to document the normal flow profile in the aortic isthmus throughout pregnancy. The study included 81 normal fetuses from 17 to 39 weeks of gestation. On the isthmic flow profile, an index, named the balance index, was calculated: (peak systolic--end-diastolic velocities/forward--reverse flow velocity integrals). Before 20 weeks of gestation, a forward flow was recorded throughout the cardiac cycle and the diastolic deceleration phase was gradual and smooth. After 20 weeks, an incisura appeared at end-systole that progressively increased, and by 30 weeks of gestation a brief reverse diastolic flow was constantly recorded. The balance index increased slightly throughout gestation. Color flow mapping demonstrated that the reverse flow observed late in gestation in the isthmus was coming from the ductus arteriosus. In conclusion, the morphology of the Doppler flow velocity waveform of the fetal aortic isthmus changes with gestation. The proposed balance index may be useful in identifying fetuses with disturbed peripheral hemodynamics.