Management of acute-onset pancreatitis in dogs: a Narrative Review.

Acute-onset pancreatitis (AP) is common in dogs and presents diagnostic as well as management challenges. Until recently, the management of AP in dogs was based mainly on supportive and symptomatic care. Identification and management of a possible cause of the disease is important, but the majority of cases are considered to be idiopathic. Fluid therapy that is tailored to the patient's needs is crucial to provide adequate hydration while preventing overhydration. Antiemetics are required to control vomiting and fluid loss and aid in early nutritional support. Recognition and management of complications is also crucial. Furthermore, analgesics for abdominal pain are very important. More recently, pharmaceutical modification of the inflammatory cascade has gained interest and the first specific therapeutic agent for the treatment of AP, fuzapladib sodium, has been shown to have a reasonable expectation of effectiveness in a pilot study. This drug has been licensed for the treatment of clinical signs of AP in dogs in Japan and also has achieved FDA conditional approval in the US. Antibiotics should not be used indiscriminately but are indicated for patients with aspiration pneumonia, gastrointestinal bacterial translocation, or evidence of another bacterial infection. Proton pump inhibitors and plasma are not routinely prescribed in pancreatitis unless specifically indicated. Nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs should be avoided. Corticosteroid therapy, once thought to be contraindicated, may have some beneficial effects, as shown in a single retrospective study. However, further studies are required before their routine use can be recommended. Finally, a surgical approach is rarely indicated.

Relationship between Respiratory Rate, Oxygen Saturation, and Blood Test Results in Dogs with Chronic or Acute Respiratory Disease: A Retrospective Study.

This study aimed to investigate the association of respiratory rate (RR), oxygen saturation (SpO2), and blood findings with respiratory disease in dogs and to compare the examination findings in the chronic and acute phases. Dogs that visited a veterinary referral hospital with respiratory symptoms were classified into the chronic disease group (GC), and those that visited the emergency veterinary hospital were classified into the acute disease group (GA). In total, 704 and 682 dogs were included in GC and GA, respectively. The RR and SpO2 were significantly higher and lower, respectively, in patients with lung disease compared to other disease sites in both groups. White blood cell counts were significantly increased in patients with lung and pleural diseases in both groups. Respiratory alkalosis and respiratory acidosis were most common in GC and GA, respectively. The C-reactive protein levels were elevated in both groups, primarily in patients with lung disease. Associations between the results of several tests for understanding and diagnosing respiratory conditions and diseases were recognized, and differences in the trends of the chronic and acute phases were clarified. These tools may be used as adjuncts to other tests for the diagnosis and monitoring of treatment responses.

The Prognostic Utility of Venous Blood Gas Analyses at Presentation in Cats with Cardiogenic Pulmonary Edema.

Cats urgently visit emergency hospitals due to respiratory distress, and the chief cause is cardiogenic pulmonary edema (CPE). Although cats with CPE were frequently encountered in clinics, the prognostic factors were poorly reported. The objective of this retrospective study was to investigate the association of physical examination and venous blood gas parameters with the survival of cats with CPE in an emergency hospital. Thirty-six cats with CPE were ultimately included in the present study, and eight of them died within 12 h after their presentation to our hospital. Statistical analyses of clinical parameters between cats that died within 12 h and those that survived for 12 h were conducted using Mann-Whitney U test with Bonferroni correction. Cats that died within 12 h had significantly lower rectal temperatures and higher PvCO2 than those that did not die within 12 h. Moreover, hypotension and vasoconstrictor use were related to death within 12 h of presentation and higher PvCO2. These findings indicated the prognostic utility of body temperature and PvCO2, and the association between hypercapnia and the severity of CPE or hypotension. A large number of prospective studies should be performed to validate these results.

Effects of hypoxia and glucose-removal condition on muscle contraction of the smooth muscles of porcine urinary bladder.

To elucidate the dependence of aerobic energy metabolism and utilization of glucose in contraction of urinary bladder smooth muscle, we investigated the changes in the reduced pyridine nucleotide (PNred) fluorescence, representing glycolysis activity, and determined the phosphocreatine (PCr) and ATP contents of the porcine urinary bladder during contractions induced by high K(+) or carbachol (CCh) and with and without hypoxia (achieved by bubbling N2 instead of O2) or in a glucose-free condition. Hyperosmotic addition of 65 mM KCl (H-65K(+)) and 1 µM CCh induced a phasic contraction followed by a tonic contraction. A glucose-free physiological salt solution (PSS) did not change the subsequent contractile responses to H-65K(+) and CCh. However, hypoxia significantly attenuated H-65K(+)- and CCh-induced contraction. H-65K(+) and CCh induced a sustained increase in PNred fluorescence, representing glycolysis activity. Hypoxia enhanced H-65K(+)- and CCh-induced increases in PNred fluorescence, whereas glucose-free PSS decreased these increases, significantly. In the presence of H-65K(+), hypoxia decreased the PCr and ATP contents; however, the glucose-free PSS did not change the PCr contents. In conclusion, we demonstrated that high K(+)- and CCh-induced contractions depend on aerobic metabolism and that an endogenous substrate may be utilized to maintain muscle contraction in a glucose-free PSS in the porcine urinary bladder.