Antimicrobial use in the surgical treatment of canine pyometra: A questionnaire survey of Arizona-licensed veterinarians.

BACKGROUND: Recent studies and consensus statements in veterinary and human medicine recommend more judicious use of antimicrobials. While guidelines have been provided for some veterinary diseases, others have poorly elucidated guidelines. Postoperative treatment of canine pyometra is a condition with minimal guidelines regarding antimicrobial use. OBJECTIVE: To identify and investigate patterns of antimicrobial use following surgically treated canine pyometra. METHODS: A 23-question survey, sent to 863 small and mixed animal practitioners, investigated demographics, patterns of antibiotic use, rate of culture submission and participant's recollection of outcomes of surgically treated pyometra cases. Responses were analysed for relationships between demographics, patterns of antibiotic use and culture results to better understand reasoning for antibiotic protocols. RESULTS: One hundred and fifty-two responses were received. Overall, 76% of veterinarians stated they always use preoperative and perioperative antibiotics, and 74% stated they always use postoperative antibiotics. A total of 16 different antibiotics were reported. Twelve per cent of respondents regularly submitted a culture. Culture submission was impacted by cost, prior experience, poor owner compliance, result turnaround time and anticipated results. CONCLUSIONS: Most respondents always used antibiotics and rarely or never submitted a culture. To optimise patient care, future clinical studies are needed to determine specific guidelines for the use of culture and antibiotics in the treatment of canine pyometra following ovariohysterectomy.

Urethral obstruction and urolithiasis associated with patent urachus in a 12-week-old kitten.

CASE SUMMARY: A 12-week-old intact male domestic shorthair kitten presented for dysuria. The patient had a urethral obstruction that was relieved with urinary catheter placement. A cutaneous opening at the umbilicus was identified. Three-view abdominal radiographs and a contrast study revealed a patent urachus with no evidence of urine leakage into the abdomen. An exploratory laparotomy was performed that confirmed a patent urachus, which was excised, and cystic and urethral calculi, which were removed via cystotomy. The patient recovered well from surgery, with a 12 h period of stranguria occurring 2 days postoperatively, attributed to residual inflammation. Calculi analysis revealed struvite stones, likely secondary to infection and inflammation. At the time of writing, 3 months postoperatively, the kitten had one episode of hematuria and inappropriate urination, which resolved with a short course of non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, but had been otherwise been asymptomatic and healthy. RELEVANCE AND NOVEL INFORMATION: To our knowledge, this is the first report of urolithiasis and patent urachus in a pediatric feline patient. Based on the occurrence of struvite stones in the presence of a patent urachus in an animal of this age, we suspect that chronic infection and inflammation led to the development of urolithiasis. Correction of the patent urachus resulted in almost complete resolution of clinical signs and no crystal formation was appreciated on recheck urinalysis.

Fluoxetine exposure impacts boldness in female Siamese fighting fish, Betta splendens.

The present study examined the effects of the selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor, fluoxetine, on the behavior of female Siamese fighting fish, Betta splendens, in three different boldness assays (Empty Tank, Novel Environment, Social Tendency). When females were unexposed to fluoxetine, boldness was consistent within a context and correlated across assays. Fluoxetine exposure affected behavior within and among individuals on multiple levels. Exposure reduced overall boldness levels, made females behave in a less consistent manner, and significantly reduced correlations over time and across contexts. Fluoxetine exerted its effects on female Betta splendens behavior in a dose-dependent fashion and these effects persisted even after females were housed in clean water. If fluoxetine exposure impacts behaviors such as exploration that are necessary to an individual's success, this may yield evolutionary consequences. In conclusion, the results show that fluoxetine exposure alters behavior beyond the level of overall response and highlights the importance of studying the behavioral effects of inadvertent pharmaceutical exposure in multiple contexts and with different dosing regimes.