Buccal mucosa bleeding times of healthy dogs and of dogs in various pathologic states, including thrombocytopenia, uremia, and von Willebrand's disease

The buccal mucosa bleeding time (BMBT; duration of hemorrhage from standardized cuts made with a spring-loaded disposable device in the mucosal surface of the upper lip) was used to evaluate the hemostatic competence of dogs. The mean (+/- SD) BMBT for 34 healthy dogs was 2.62 +/- 0.49 minutes. The BMBT of healthy dogs anesthetized with halothane or tranquilized with xylazine were not significantly different from the BMBT of healthy dogs evaluated without chemical restraint. The BMBT was significantly (P less than 0.01) prolonged 21 hours after aspirin (10 mg/kg of body weight) was administered orally to 10 healthy dogs; however, the mean aspirin-induced increase in BMBT was only 0.40 minutes. The BMBT of 28 of 30 dogs with various diseases not traditionally associated with hemostatic deficiencies were near or within the range of BMBT for healthy dogs; however, 2 dogs had BMBT of greater than 8 minutes. In contrast, BMBT were prolonged in most dogs with diseases known to induce deficient primary hemostasis; the 3 dogs with thrombocytopenia (less than or equal to 20,000 platelets/microliter), the 7 Doberman Pinschers with von Willebrand's disease (von Willebrand factor antigen; less than or equal to 18 U/dl), and 5 of the 6 dogs with severe azotemia (serum urea nitrogen; greater than or equal to 124 mg/dl) had prolonged BMBT. The BMBT of 16 dogs were determined immediately before they were subjected to various surgical procedures, and the severity of the hemorrhage encountered during these procedures was subjectively evaluated; the amount of hemorrhage from 12 of the 16 dogs was considered to be appropriate for the corresponding surgical procedures, but the remaining 4 dogs bled excessively during surgery.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)