1,720,981 research outputs found
Evidence-Based Veterinary Medicine: a tool for evaluating the healing process after surgical treatment for cranial cruciate ligament rupture in dogs
Full text linkThis study aims to validate a tool, the Bologna healing stifle injury index (BHSII), for the evaluation of the clinical picture and the healing after surgical treatment for cranial cruciate ligament (CCL) rupture. The study included 158 client-owned dogs with CCL rupture and 20 healthy dogs. The BHSII is a questionnaire made up of 34 multiple-choice questions, divided into a part directed to the clinician and a part for the dog's owners. It was applied twice in the healthy dogs in order to test and retest the device. It was evaluated for reliability, validity, and responsiveness to clinical changes involving the dogs treated at the time of surgery, and 1, 3, and 6 months postoperatively. Statistical analyses were performed and the intraclass correlation coefficient test was ≥0.9 and the Cronbach-α was 0.84 suggesting good stability and good internal consistency of the tool. The area under the curve of the receiver operating characteristic curve was >0.9, indicative of the high accuracy of this tool. The clinician survey correlated with the owner questionnaire. In dogs with CCL rupture, the scores of the BHSII increased significantly postoperatively as compared with baseline. In conclusion, this clinical study proved the reliability, validity, and responsiveness of the BHSII. The results achieved from the BHSII provided an instantaneous, collective complete vision of the healing process of the stifle joints treated. It can be considered a valid tool for collecting data and for assessing successful surgical treatment in clinical practice
Short-term General Anesthesia With Tiletamine/Zolazepam in Horses Sedated With Medetomidine for Castration Under Field Conditions
No full textThe objective of the study is to evaluate the anesthetic effect produced by the tiletamine/zolazepamassociation in horses sedated with medetomidine undergoing orchiectomy underfield conditions. Tenuncastrated male horses, American Society of Anesthesiologists category I, undergoing orchiectomy,were enrolled in the study. The horses received acepromazine (0.03 mg kg1intramuscularly) 30 mi-nutes before sedation with medetomidine (8mgkg1intravenously). Anesthesia was induced withtiletamine/zolazepam (0.7 mg kg1intravenously). During anesthesia, heart rate (HR), pulse quality,respiratory rate, temperature, SpO2, movement, and reflexes were measured every 5 minutes. Arterialblood gases were evaluated before the premedication and during the surgical procedure. The quality ofinduction and recovery was recorded. The sedation was appropriate, and the quality of recovery wasevaluated as good. A statistically significant difference was revealed between the basal and intra-anesthesia HR. No differences were observed in blood gas parameters during the procedure. The re-sults suggested that general anesthesia produced with tiletamine/zolazepam for induction in horsessedated with medetomidine is suitable during orchiectomy underfield conditions
The influence of environmental variables on platelet concentration in horse platelet-rich plasma
Full text linkPlatelet-rich plasma (PRP) commonly refers to blood products which contain a higher platelet (PLT) concentration as compared to normal plasma. Autologous PRP has been shown to be safe and effective in promoting the natural processes of soft tissue healing or reconstruction in humans and horses. Variability in PLT concentration has been observed in practice between PRP preparations from different patients or from the same individual under different conditions. A change in PLT concentration could modify PRP efficacy in routine applications. The aim of this study was to test the influence of environmental, individual and agonistic variables on the PLT concentration of PRP in horses. Six healthy Standardbred mares were exposed to six different variables with a one-week washout period between variables, and PRP was subsequently obtained from each horse. The variables were time of withdrawal during the day (morning/evening), hydration status (overhydration/dehydration) treatment with anti-inflammatory drugs and training periods on a treadmill. The platelet concentration was significantly higher in horses treated with a non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug (P= 0.03). The leukocyte concentration increased 2-9 fold with respect to whole blood in the PRP which was obtained after exposure to all the variable considered. Environmental variation in platelet concentration should be taken into consideration during PRP preparation
Comparison of intraperitoneal ropivacaine and bupivacaine for postoperative analgesia in dogs undergoing ovariohysterectomy
No full textObjective: To compare postoperative analgesia following either intraperitoneal (IP) ropivacaine or bupivacaine in dogs undergoing ovariohysterectomy (OVH) in the scope of multimodal analgesia. Study design: Prospective, randomized, blinded clinical study. Animals: A total of 45 privately owned dogs undergoing OVH, aged 37 ± 28 months and weighing 11.3 ± 4.5 kg. Methods: Dogs were premedicated with acepromazine (0.05 mg kg−1) and morphine (0.5 mg kg−1) intramuscularly (IM). Anaesthesia was induced with alfaxalone and maintained with isoflurane in oxygen. Carprofen (4 mg kg−1) was injected subcutaneously after intubation. Dogs were randomly assigned to receive either bupivacaine (group B; 3 mg kg−1) or ropivacaine (group R; 3 mg kg−1) IP prior to complete closure of the linea alba. At 0.5, 1, 2, 4, 6 and 8 hours after extubation, sedation and postoperative pain were assessed, using the short form of the Glasgow Composite Pain scale (GCPS-SF), a dynamic interactive visual analogue scale (DIVAS), and mechanical nociceptive threshold (MNT) measurement. Rescue morphine (0.2 mg kg−1) was administered in case of ≥ 5/20 or ≥ 6/24 in the GCPS-SF and/or >40 mm in the DIVAS. Parametric data were compared using the t test; nonparametric data were analysed with the two-sample Wilcoxon test (p < 0.05). Results: The GCPS-SF score was significantly higher in group R at 8 hours. There was no other significant difference regarding sedation or analgesia between the groups. Rescue analgesia was administered to 15 dogs (R: 9/22; B: 6/22), with no significant difference between the groups. MNT values decreased in both groups at all time points when compared to baseline. No adverse effects were observed. Conclusions and clinical relevance: Ropivacaine or bupivacaine IP in combination with morphine IM and carprofen SC provided comparable postoperative analgesia in dogs after OVH for 6 hours. However, the anaesthetic protocol used did not prevent the administration of rescue analgesia in 41% of animals
Water Immersion vs. Gas Insufflation in Canine Duodenal Endoscopy: Is the Future Underwater?
Full text linkThe endoscopy of the gastrointestinal tract is often part of the diagnostic protocol for canine acute and chronic gastroenteropathy. To analyze properly the
intestinal wall, it is fundamental to distend the lumen, usually inflating it with air. In human medicine, it is well known how the gas insufflation (GI) with air or
carbonic dioxide during colonoscopy can induce pain in the patient. More and more frequently it is used with warm-to-touch water, instead of air, to distend
the lumen. Randomized controlled trials suggest that the introduction of water to distend the lumen of the colon decreases spasm of the musculature of the
bowel and pain, and significantly increases the visualization of mucosal texture and the adenoma detection rate.
This study was the first in veterinary medicine to compare GI and water immersion (WI) during duodenoscopy in anesthetized dogs, in order to evaluate
eventual differences in procedural nociception and in the quality of mucosal visualization.
Twenty-five dogs, subjected to endoscopy under general anesthesia, were included in the study. To evaluate differences in nociception during anesthesia,
heart rate and arterial blood pressure (systolic, diastolic and mean) were measured throughout the procedure and divided into four steps (baseline, water,
air, outcome). A random sequence of GI or WI was applied to dilate duodenal lumen and, in every condition, the same mucosal image of the bowel was
recorded. For every dog, two images (GI and WI) were recorded and subjected to a texture analysis by using image processing approaches like
skeletonization and entropy evaluation, and to a subjective blind evaluation by three expert endoscopists, considering the architecture and the intestinal
texture. No systematic significant differences were detected for the cardiovascular parameters and the texture analysis between GI and WI, except for the
subjective evaluation by the endoscopists, who identified the WI images as qualitatively better.
The results of this study highlight how the algic answer does not change between the two methods, maybe influenced by the drugs used during the
endoscopy, which well control nociception and give deep anesthesia. Based on the evaluation of the endoscopists, the WI allows to get better quality
images, with a detailed visualization of the intestinal villi, while this is still not confirmed by objective texture analysis
Clinical Evaluation of Intralesional Injection of Platelet-Rich Plasma for the Treatment of Proximal Suspensory Ligament Desmitis in Horses
No full textThe study clinically evaluated the effectiveness of autologous platelet-rich plasma (PRP), obtained using a double transfusion bag after an ultrasound-guided intralesion injection into an acute lesion of proximal portion of suspensory ligament (SL). Twenty horses with acute proximal suspensory ligament desmitis were included in the study. An ultrasound evaluation of the proximal region of the SL was carried out, and the cross-sectional area (CSA) percentage and fiber score alignment were determined. Four hundred fifty milliliters of blood was collected, and PRP was obtained by means of the buffy coat method, using a double transfusion bag. The PRP was injected into the lesion using an ultrasound guide. A long-term follow-up was carried out by means of a telephonic interview with the owner. The median CSA of the SL lesion at the first examination was 30%. The median platelet count in the PRP was 1,045 × 103 platelets/μL; the final concentration ranged from six to 20 times higher than the platelet blood count. Sixteen horses returned to activity within a period ranging from 12 to 24weeks from the last PRP injection, and four animals recidivated in different regions of suspensory ligament: midbody desmitis and medial branch. Clinical results confirm that the use of autologous PRP supports healing and reduces recurrence in acute SL lesions
Going Beyond Counting First Authors in Author Co-citation Analysis
Full text linkThe present study examines one of the fundamental aspects of author co-citation analysis (ACA) - the way co-citation
counts are defined. Co-citation counting provides the data on which all subsequent statistical analyses and mappings
are based, and we compare ACA results based on two different types of co-citation counting - the traditional type that
only counts the first one among a cited work's authors on the one hand and a non-traditional type that takes into
account the first 5 authors of a cited work on the other hand. Results indicate that the picture produced through this non-traditional author co-citation counting contains more coherent author groups and is therefore considerably clearer. However, this picture represents fewer specialties in the research field being studied than that produced through the traditional first-author co-citation counting when the same number of top-ranked authors is selected and analyzed. Reasons for these effects are discussed
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