Nylon cable band reactions in ovariohysterectomized bitches.

Nylon cable bands used as ligatures caused postsurgical complications in 5 ovariohysterectomized bitches. Clinical signs included fever, stiffness, strangury, draining fistulae, vaginal discharge, and tenesmus. Most signs first appeared several years after surgery, and all signs were resolved after removal of the bands. On the basis of our experience, we suggest that nylon cable bands not be used for ovariohysterectomy ligations.     

In situ disappearance of neutral detergent insoluble nitrogen from alfalfa and eastern gamagrass at three maturities.

In situ digestion kinetics of neutral detergent insoluble nitrogen (NDIN) from alfalfa (Medicago sativa L.) harvested at one-tenth bloom and eastern gamagrass (Tripsacum dactyloides L.) harvested at the boot (GGB), anthesis (GGA), and physiological maturity (GGM) stages of growth were determined with nonlinear regression techniques. Whole-plant tissue and associated leaf and stem fractions were incubated in the ventral rumen simultaneously. On a wholeplant basis, potential extents of degradation were particularly high (> or =904 g/kg NDIN) for GGB and GGA, relative to those of GGM and alfalfa (772 and 658 g/kg NDIN, respectively). For all plant parts, degradation rates of NDIN were faster (P<.05) for alfalfa than for all gamagrass forages. Degradation rate of NDIN did not differ (P>.05) across maturities for any gamagrass tissue type. These results indicate 1) that phenological development and lignification do not limit the rate of NDIN degradation in gamagrass forages but do markedly limit the potential extent of NDIN availability and 2) that most of the NDIN in these forages is potentially available in the rumen and can contribute to the ruminal N supply. Our secondary objective was to compare estimates of N escaping ruminal degradation that were determined on the basis of NDIN degradation kinetics (NDIN method) with those determined traditionally, on the basis of total residual N. The NDIN method mathematically eliminates all neutral detergent soluble N from consideration as part of the pool of dietary N potentially escaping the rumen intact. Estimates of rumen escape nitrogen determined on the basis of degradation rates of NDIN were consistently less than corresponding estimates that were determined on the basis of total residual N. When ruminal escape N that was determined with the NDIN method was regressed on corresponding estimates with the total residual N method, the slopes of the regression lines were .53 and .66 for assumed passage rates of .02 and .06 h(-1), respectively. For the forages evaluated in this study, these results indicate that neutral detergent soluble N may make important contributions to the pool of N escaping ruminal degradation.     

Feline retinal degeneration: clinical experience and new findings (1994-1997)

A retrospective case series of 26 cats with diffuse retinal degeneration is presented. The most common presenting complaints included bumping into objects, dilated pupils, and reluctance to jump. Ophthalmic examination findings were consistent with those reported in dogs with progressive retinal atrophy. Breed predilection of the Siamese cat was observed. Cats with primary retinal degeneration presented late in the clinical course of their disease, when vision loss was severe. Early symptoms such as night blindness and secondary ocular complications (i.e., cataract and retinal detachment), reported in dogs with progressive retinal degeneration, were not observed in this study. All cats showed excellent adaptive capabilities to blindness.     

REVERSIBLE MAGNETIC RESONANCE IMAGING ABNORMALITIES IN DOGS FOLLOWING SEIZURES

Reversible magnetic resonance (MR) imaging lesions have been described in humans following seizures. This condition has not yet been reported in animals. This paper describes reversible abnormalities identified in 3 dogs using MR imaging that was performed initially within 14 days of the last seizure and follow-up imaging that was performed after 10 to 16 weeks of anticonvulsant therapy. All three dogs had lesions in the piriform/temporal lobes, characterized by varying degrees of hyperintensity on T2-weighted images and hypointensity on T1-weighted images. In one dog, contrast enhancement was evident. On reevaluation, partial resolution occurred in all 3 dogs. In a fourth animal with an olfactory meningioma, similar appearing lesions in the temporal cortex and right and left piriform lobes were identified after seizure activity. A surgical biopsy of the temporal cortex and hippocampus was performed and edema, neovascularization, reactive astrocytosis, and acute neuronal necrosis were evident. These histologic findings are similar to those reported in humans with seizures. Recognizing the potential occurrence of reversible abnormalities in MR images is important in developing a diagnostic and therapeutic plan in canine patients with seizures. Repeat imaging after seizure control may help differentiate between seizure-induced changes and primary multifocal parenchymal abnormalities.     

Comparison of clinical signs and hemodynamic variables used to monitor rabbits during halothane- and isoflurane-induced anesthesia

OBJECTIVE: To characterize variables used to monitor rabbits during inhalation anesthesia. ANIMALS: 8 male New Zealand White rabbits. PROCEDURE: Rabbits were similarly anesthetized with halothane (HAL) or isoflurane (ISO) in a crossover study; half received HAL followed by ISO, and the protocol was reversed for the remaining rabbits. After induction, minimum alveolar concentration (MAC) was determined for each agent, using the tail-clamp method, and variables were recorded at 0.8, 1.0, 1.5, and 2.0 MAC (order randomized). RESULTS: Mean +/- SEM MAC was 1.42 +/- 0.05 and 2.07 +/- 0.09% for HAL and ISO, respectively. Directly measured auricular mean arterial blood pressure was 52.8 +/- 5.6 and 54.8 +/- 6.1 mm Hg at 0.8 MAC for HAL and ISO, respectively, and decreased from these values in a parallel dose-dependent manner. Respiratory frequency remained constant (range, 69 to 78 breaths/min) over the range of HAL doses but incrementally decreased from a mean of 53 (at 0.8 MAC) to 32 breaths/min (at 2.0 MAC) for ISO. The PaCO2 was similar at 0.8 MAC for HAL and ISO and progressively increased with increasing doses of both agents; PaCO2 at 2.0 MAC for ISO was significantly greater than that at 2.0 MAC for HAL (79.8 +/- 13.7 vs 54.9 +/- 4.0 mm Hg, respectively). Eyelid aperture consistently increased in a dose-dependent manner for both anesthetics. CONCLUSIONS: Arterial blood pressure, PaCO2, and eyelid aperture consistently and predictably changed in rabbits in response to changes in anesthetic doses. The magnitude of respiratory depression was greater for ISO than for HAL.     

A comparison of N-butylscopolammonium bromide and butorphanol tartrate for analgesia using a balloon model of abdominal pain in ponies.

The analgesic effect of N-butylscopolammonium bromide (0.3 mg/kg) using a balloon-induced model of colic in ponies was evaluated and compared with butorphanol tartrate (0.1 mg/kg). Eight adult ponies were used and each received both treatments during the two different trials. The order in which the treatment was received was randomly assigned. At the start of each trial, moderate abdominal pain was induced by inflation of a balloon placed in the lumen of the caecum. The ponies were evaluated every 5 minutes, and a cumulative pain score (CPS) was assigned. Two baseline measurements were recorded, followed by the administration of one of the two treatments. Assessments were continued for 60 minutes, or until moderate abdominal pain returned. Three ponies out of 8 responded to treatment with butorphanol tartrate, while 6 out of 8 ponies responded to N-butylscopolammonium bromide. There were no statistical differences in the CPS or duration of drug action between treatments.     

Comparative Evaluation of Two Surgical Scrub Preparations in Cattle

One hundred seventeen cattle that had undergone surgery were assigned randomly to two preoperative skin preparation protocols. Group 1 (60 animals) skin preparation was with povidone-iodine soap and isopropyl alcohol, whereas group 2 (57 animals) had skin preparation with chlorhexidine gluconate and isopropyl alcohol. Quantitative microbial culture plates were used to estimate the number of colony forming units (CFUs) before skin preparation (prescrub), after skin preparation (postscrub), after surgery (postoperative), and in room air (environment). A significant decrease in CFU occurred postscrub for both skin preparations ( P <.05). Chlorhexidine and alcohol preparation resulted in significantly fewer CFUs (LSMean ± SE = 2.79 CFU ± 1.74) and a greater percentage reduction in CFUs (98.64%± 2.01) postscrub than povidone and alcohol (LSMean ± SE = 10.27 CFUs ± 1.51, 93.29%± 1.85); ( P <.005). Group 2 had a significantly higher frequency of negative cultures postscrub (49.1%) compared with group 1 (18.3%) ( P <.001). The number of postoperative CFUs were not significantly different between the two treatment groups. Wound infection frequency for clean surgical procedures was not significantly different between the two skin preparation protocols (group 1 = 9.8%, group 2 = 10.7%), however, infection frequency was significantly higher for surgical procedures with a ventral abdominal approach (5 of 14, 35.7%), compared with a flank approach (1 of 41, 2.4%) or other approaches (orthopedic procedures) (1 of 16, 6.3%) ( P <.05). Both skin preparation protocols were effective and safe in decreasing the skin microflora population of cattle before surgery and although preparation with chlorhexidine gluconate and alcohol resulted in less CFUs immediafly postscrub, the frequency of surgical wound infection was similar for both protocols.     

Oligodendroglial vacuolar degeneration in the bilateral motor cortices and astrocytosis in epileptic beagle dogs

We performed a pathologic examination of the brains of three dogs in an epileptic beagle colony. Histologically, all the cases had diffuse astrocytosis in the cerebral cortex and basal ganglia as well as the hippocampus, whereas they showed acute nerve cell change in the hippocampus and some other areas of the cerebrum. One of these animals showed laminar myelin pallor associated with the presence of many vacuoles in the IV to VI layers of the bilateral motor cortices. Most of the vacuoles contained fine granules stained with luxol-fast-blue stain. Ultrastructural examination revealed that some oligodendrocytes and perineuronal satellite oligodendrocytes in the bilateral cerebral motor cortices of the two affected dogs had many vacuoles surrounded by myelin-like lamellar structures. These findings suggest a possibility that astrocytosis in the cerebrum and vacuolar degeneration of oligodendrocytes in the cerebral motor cortex may be, at least in part, related to the occurrence or development of seizures.