ABSTRACT
Uroperitoneum is a rarely documented finding in heifers. More frequently uroperitoneum is described in male youngstock suffering from obstructive urolithiasis, or abscesses of the urachus. This report describes a case of uroperitoneum most likely as a result of a traumatic rupture of the urinary bladder in an 8.5 months old heifer. The animal was presented with a severely dilated abdomen and an undulating wave was evident upon palpation. The heifer exhibited physiologic urination. Additionally, left displacement of the abomasum was evident. In consequence to findings of the ultrasonographic examination and abdominocentesis, diagnostic laparotomy was performed. Urine was evacuated from the abdominal cavity in fractions and the damaged cranial pole of the urinary bladder was excised followed by the suture of the urinary bladder. The abomasum was replaced in its physiologic position and an omentopexy was performed. The heifer was discharged from hospital and was still in the herd 5 years after discharge.
Subject(s)
Cattle Diseases , Animals , Cattle , Female , Cattle Diseases/surgery , Cattle Diseases/diagnosis , Cattle Diseases/diagnostic imaging , Urinary Bladder/surgery , Urinary Bladder/pathology , Peritoneal Diseases/veterinary , Peritoneal Diseases/surgery , Peritoneal Diseases/diagnosis , Rupture/veterinary , Rupture/surgeryABSTRACT
BACKGROUND: Surgical abdominal emergencies in calves are associated with a guarded prognosis and have the potential for complex metabolic derangements including acid-base imbalances. OBJECTIVES: To perform a comprehensive analysis of acid-base status and to assess the prognostic relevance of preoperative clinicopathologic variables in calves undergoing abdominal surgery. ANIMALS: Hospital-based study samples of 535 (dataset 1; DS1) and 83 calves (dataset 2; DS2). METHODS: Retrospective (DS1) and prospective (DS2) case series. RESULTS: In DS1, acidemia (pH <7.33) was present in 49.9%, whereas alkalemia (pH >7.37) was present in 30.7% of calves. Plasma L-lactate, chloride, and serum inorganic phosphorus concentration accounted for 51.9%, 11.6% and 9.4% of the variation of venous blood pH, respectively. Classification tree analysis indicated that a negative outcome (death or euthanasia during hospitalization) was associated with venous pO2 ≤33.6 mm Hg, anion gap >18.3 and >22.9 mEq/L, serum albumin concentration ≤36.5 and ≤29.4 g/L, serum urea concentration >4.4 mmol/L, and plasma ionized calcium concentration ≤1.26 mmol/L. The area under the receiver operating characteristic curve of this model was 0.85 (95% CI: 0.82-0.89, P < .001) and the resulting sensitivity and specificity for the prediction of nonsurvival at the optimal probability cut-point of 0.5 was 89.8% and 65.7%, respectively. In DS2 the model had a similar sensitivity and specificity of 90.5% and 70%, respectively. CONCLUSIONS AND CLINICAL IMPORTANCE: Clinicopathologic imbalances and associated changes of acid-base status are common in calves with surgical abdominal emergencies and have clinical utility for the prediction of a negative postoperative outcome.
