Eleven-year retrospective analysis of acquired diaphragmatic hernia in 49 dogs and 48 cats.

Data on dogs and cats that underwent surgery for a traumatic diaphragmatic hernia were retrospectively collected and analyzed, with an objective to identify factors that influenced the survival rate. Forty-nine dogs and 48 cats were included. The predominant respiratory clinical sign was dyspnea, and the interval from trauma to development of clinical signs did not influence patient survival. Concurrent orthopedic and/or soft tissue injuries were identified in 48.45% of the animals. Intraoperative complications occurred in 14 dogs and 5 cats, and postoperative complications in 7 dogs and 6 cats. Intraoperative death occurred in 6.2% and postoperative death in 8.3% from 1 h to 10 d after surgery. Animals that received surgical treatment within 48 h after diagnosis had a lower risk of death. Conversely, concurrent injuries and intraoperative and postoperative complications were the main factors associated with a higher risk of death.

Analyse rétrospective sur onze ans des hernies diaphragmatiques acquises chez 49 chiens et 48 chats. Les données sur les chiens et les chats ayant subi une intervention chirurgicale pour une hernie diaphragmatique traumatique ont été recueillies et analysées rétrospectivement, dans le but d'identifier les facteurs qui ont influencé le taux de survie. Quarante-neuf chiens et 48 chats ont été inclus. Le signe clinique respiratoire prédominant était la dyspnée, et l'intervalle entre le traumatisme et le développement des signes cliniques n'a pas influencé la survie des patients. Des lésions orthopédiques et/ou des tissus mous concomitantes ont été identifiées chez 48,45 % des animaux. Des complications peropératoires sont survenues chez 14 chiens et cinq chats, et des complications postopératoires chez sept chiens et six chats. Le décès peropératoire est survenu chez 6,2 % et le décès postopératoire chez 8,3 % de 1 h à 10 j après la chirurgie. Les animaux qui ont reçu un traitement chirurgical dans les 48 h après le diagnostic avaient un risque de décès plus faible. À l'inverse, les blessures concomitantes et les complications peropératoires et postopératoires étaient les principaux facteurs associés à un risque de décès plus élevé.(Traduit par Dr Serge Messier).

Angularis oris axial pattern flap as a reliable and versatile option for rostral facial reconstruction in cats.

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate outcomes associated with the use of an angularis oris axial pattern flap (AOAPF) for rostral facial reconstruction in cats. ANIMALS: Nine adult client-owned cats. STUDY DESIGN: Short case series. METHODS: Ten AOAPF were performed in nine cats after resection of a tumor. Wounds were located at the nose, infraorbital, supraorbital, frontal, eye, and ear canal region. Orbital exenteration (n = 3), pinnectomy (n = 2), nasal planum resection, total ear canal ablation (n = 2), and partial eyelid reconstruction (n = 3) were performed. RESULTS: Short-term postoperative complications included flap edema (n = 10), suture dehiscence (n = 3), and distal tip necrosis (n = 3). All wounds resulting from minor complications healed by second intention in 5-15 days. Long-term complications included epiphora (n = 2), frequent grooming around the eyes (n = 2), and enucleation due to corneal ulcer secondary to impaired postoperative eyelid function (n = 1). Tumor recurrence occurred in 3 cases. CONCLUSION: The AOAPF was a versatile and reliable option for rostral facial reconstruction in cats with acceptable long-term outcomes.

Lymphatic invasion is a significant indicator of poor patient outcome in canine bladder urothelial carcinoma.

BACKGROUND: Urothelial carcinoma (UC), also known as transitional cell carcinoma, is the most common malignant tumor of the canine urinary bladder and represents a model for studying human bladder cancer. However, the existing literature has limited data on the clinicopathological characteristics of these tumors and their prognostic value. AIM: The aim of this study was to evaluate such factors, correlating them with follow-up, in a group of 32 dogs with bladder UC. METHODS: Clinical data of these cases, submitted to São Paulo State University and VetPat Private Laboratory (São Paulo/Brazil), were recorded between January 2000 and November 2019. For each case, formalin-fixed and paraffin-embedded sections were stained with hematoxylin and eosin and histologically evaluated. Survival analysis was carried out, and the prognostic value of the presence of lymphatic invasion and the treatment used was determined. RESULTS: Dogs with neoplastic lymphatic vessel invasion had a lower overall survival compared to those without lymphatic invasion, and dogs that received vinblastine in addition to surgery had higher global survival when compared to animals that received carboplatin in addition to surgery. CONCLUSION: The results obtained show the importance of further studies regarding the prognostic value of the two factors demonstrated as potential survival predictors, especially the lymphatic vessel invasion.

Effects of pneumoperitoneum and of an alveolar recruitment maneuver followed by positive end-expiratory pressure on cardiopulmonary function in sheep anesthetized with isoflurane-fentanyl.

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the effects of pneumoperitoneum alone or combined with an alveolar recruitment maneuver (ARM) followed by positive end-expiratory pressure (PEEP) on cardiopulmonary function in sheep. STUDY DESIGN: Prospective, randomized, crossover study. ANIMALS: A total of nine adult sheep (36-52 kg). METHODS: Sheep were administered three treatments (≥10-day intervals) during isoflurane-fentanyl anesthesia and volume-controlled ventilation (tidal volume: 12 mL kg-1) with oxygen: CONTROL (no intervention); PNEUMO (120 minutes of CO2 pneumoperitoneum); PNEUMOARM/PEEP (PNEUMO protocol with an ARM instituted after 60 minutes of pneumoperitoneum). The ARM (5 cmH2O increases in PEEP of 1 minute duration until 20 cmH2O of PEEP) was followed by 10 cmH2O of PEEP until the end of anesthesia. Cardiopulmonary data were recorded until 30 minutes after abdominal deflation. RESULTS: PaO2 was decreased from 435-462 mmHg (58.0-61.6 kPa) (range of mean values in CONTROL) to 377-397 mmHg (50.3-52.9 kPa) in PNEUMO (p < 0.05). Quasistatic compliance (Cqst, mL cmH2O-1 kg-1) was decreased from 0.85-0.92 in CONTROL to 0.52-0.58 in PNEUMO. PaO2 increased from 383-385 mmHg (51.1-51.3 kPa) in PNEUMO to 429-444 mmHg (57.2-59.2 kPa) in PNEUMOARM/PEEP (p < 0.05) and Cqst increased from 0.52-0.53 in PNEUMO to 0.70-0.74 in PNEUMOARM/PEEP. Abdominal deflation in PNEUMO did not restore PaO2 and Cqst to control values. Cardiac index (L minute-1 m2) decreased from 4.80-4.70 in CONTROL to 3.45-3.74 in PNEUMO and 3.63-3.76 in PNEUMOARM/PEEP. Compared with controls, ARM/PEEP with pneumoperitoneum decreased mean arterial pressure from 81 to 68 mmHg and increased mean pulmonary artery pressure from 10 to 16 mmHg. CONCLUSIONS AND CLINICAL RELEVANCE: Abdominal deflation did not reverse the pulmonary function impairment associated with pneumoperitoneum. The ARM/PEEP improved respiratory compliance and reversed the oxygenation impairment induced by pneumoperitoneum with acceptable hemodynamic changes in healthy sheep.

Histological, morphometric, protein and gene expression analyses of rat retinas with ischaemia-reperfusion injury model treated with sildenafil citrate.

The aim of this study was to better understand the role of apoptosis in a retinal ischaemia-reperfusion injury model and to determine whether sildenafil citrate treatment can prevent retinal cell apoptosis. Thirty-six rats were divided into a control group (n = 6) and two experimentally induced ischaemia-reperfusion groups (7 and 21 days; n = 15 per group). The induced ischaemia-reperfusion groups were treated with sildenafil for 7 and 21 days (n = 10 per group), and 10 animals were treated with a placebo for the same period (n = 5 per group). Paracentesis of the anterior chamber was performed with a 30-G needle attached to a saline solution (0.9%) bag positioned at a height of 150 cm above the eye for 60 min. Intraocular pressure was measured by rebound tonometer (TonoVet® ). The eyes were analysed by histology and morphometry, and by immunohistochemistry and qRT-PCR for expression of Caspase-7, Caspase-6, Caspase-9, Tnf-r2, Fas-l, Bcl-2 and Bax. Sildenafil-treated animals showed lower levels of histopathological changes (inflammatory, cellular and tissue) than their placebo-treated counterparts at both 7 and 21 days. The retinal ganglion cell layer (RGC) was preserved in the sildenafil groups (SG), with a cell count closer to control than in the placebo groups (PG). Caspase-7 expression was significantly higher in both treated groups at 7 days compared to controls. Gene expression levels in both treatment groups differed from the controls, but in SG Bax and Caspase-6 expression levels were similar to control animals. These results suggest that the main mechanism of retinal cell death in this model is apoptosis, as there is an increase in pro-apoptotic factors and decrease in the anti-apoptotic ones. Also, sildenafil seems to protect the retinal ganglion cell layer from apoptosis. Cell survival was evident in the histological and morphometric analyses, and sildenafil treatment had a protective effect in the apoptosis pathways, with gene expression levels in SG similar to the controls.

Eficácia da ciclosporina no controle da dermatite atópica em cães / Efficacy of cyclosporine in the control of atopic dermatitis in dogs

A dermatite atópica é uma dermatopatia inflamatória, pruriginosa, crônica, de origem genética, resultante da perda da função de barreira física da pele e da hiperreatividade à alérgenos ambientais, trofoalérgenos, alérgenos microbianos e a irritantes primários. Este estudo avaliou a eficácia da ciclosporina no controle do prurido e das lesões associadas à dermatite atópica em cães. Selecionaram-se 24 cães com diagnóstico de dermatite atópica baseados nos critérios de Favrot et al. (2010), os quais foram divididos em dois grupos de 12 cães, onde o Grupo 1, recebeu ciclosporina (5mg/kg/vo/24h), e o Grupo 2, foi tratado com prednisona (0,5mg/kg/vo/24h) em doses decrescentes, ambos por 60 dias. Os animais foram continuamente avaliados, e seus escores sintomato-lesionais, baseados na escala de CADESI-03, estabelecidos nos dias 0, 30 e 60. Em adição, os escores de prurido de cada animal, baseado nos critérios de Rybnicek, foram semanalmente avaliados, do dia 0 ao 63. Todos os dados coletados foram analisados pelo teste não paramétrico de Kruskal-Wallis, seguido do teste de Dunn´s e para as análises entre os grupos foi utilizado o teste t, considerado o nível de significância mínimo de 5%. A ciclosporina teve uma eficácia similar, no controle lesional, ao grupo que recebeu prednisona no dia (+30) (p<0,05) e no dia (+60) (p<0,001) do tratamento, em relação ao dia zero. Uma diferença significativa do escore do prurido foi observada nos dias +28, +35, +42, +49, +56 e +63 (p<0,001), e no dia +21 (p<0,01) em relação ao momento inicial do tratamento, porém sua eficácia foi inferior ao Grupo 2, a partir do 42º dia de avaliação, mantendo-se esta diferença nos dias +49, +56 e +63 (p>0,05). Apesar da ciclosporina ter sido menos eficaz no controle do prurido, este se manteve em níveis aceitáveis, e seu uso contínuo não foi associado a efeitos colaterais relevantes.(AU)

Atopic dermatitis is an itchy, chronic inflammatory skin disease of genetic origin, resulting from loss of the physical barrier function of the skin and hyper-reactivity to environmental allergens, trofoallergens, microbial allergens and to primary irritants. The efficacy of cyclosporine in the control of pruritus and lesions associated with atopic dermatitis in dogs was evaluated. Twenty-four dogs with atopic dermatitis were selected, based on Favrot et al.'s criteria (2010). They were divided into two groups of 12 dogs, where Group 1 received cyclosporine (5mg/kg/vo/24h), and Group 2 was treated with prednisone (0.5mg/kg/vo/24h) in decreasing doses, both for 60 days. The animals were continuously evaluated, and theirits lesional symptomatology scores were based on a Cadesi-03 scale, set on days 0, 30 and 60. Pruritus scores of each dog, based on Rybnicek´s criteria, were weekly evaluated, from day 0 to day 63. All collected data were analyzed by the nonparametric Kruskal-Wallis´ test, followed by Dunn's test, and for the analysis between the groups, considered the minimum significance level of 5%, t-test was used. Cyclosporin had similar efficacy in lesional control in the group which received prednisone on day (+30) (p<0.05) and on the day (+60) (p<0.001) of treatment, compared with day zero. A significant difference of the itching score was observed on days +28, +35, +42, +49, +56 and +63 (p<0.001), and on day +21 (p<0.01) when compared to initial treatment. However, its efficacy was lower than Group 2, from 42 days of evaluation on, keeping such difference on days +49, +56 and +63 (p>0.05). Although cyclosporin have been less effective in controlling itching, it remained at acceptable levels, and its continued use was not associated with significant side effects.(AU)