Complications associated with and outcome of surgical intervention for treatment of esophageal foreign bodies in dogs.

OBJECTIVE: To identify complications associated with and short- and long-term outcomes of surgical intervention for treatment of esophageal foreign bodies (EFBs) in dogs. ANIMALS: 63 client-owned dogs. PROCEDURES: Patient records from 9 veterinary hospitals were reviewed to identify dogs that underwent surgery for removal of an EFB or treatment or an associated esophageal perforation between 2007 and 2019. Long-term follow-up data were obtained via a client questionnaire. RESULTS: 54 of the 63 (85.7%) dogs underwent surgery after an unsuccessful minimally invasive procedure or subsequent evidence of esophageal perforation was identified. Esophageal perforation was present at the time of surgery in 42 (66.7%) dogs. Most dogs underwent a left intercostal thoracotomy (37/63 [58.7%]). Intraoperative complications occurred in 18 (28.6%) dogs, and 28 (50%) dogs had a postoperative complication. Postoperative complications were minor in 14 of the 28 (50%) dogs. Dehiscence of the esophagotomy occurred in 3 dogs. Forty-seven (74.6%) dogs survived to discharge. Presence of esophageal perforation preoperatively, undergoing a thoracotomy, and whether a gastrostomy tube was placed were significantly associated with not surviving to discharge. Follow-up information was available for 38 of 47 dogs (80.9%; mean follow-up time, 46.5 months). Infrequent vomiting or regurgitation was reported by 5 of 20 (25%) owners, with 1 dog receiving medication. CLINICAL RELEVANCE: Results suggested that surgical management of EFBs can be associated with a high success rate. Surgery should be considered when an EFB cannot be removed safely with minimally invasive methods or esophageal perforation is present.

The Prevalence of Feline Hip Dysplasia, Patellar Luxation and Lumbosacral Transitional Vertebrae in Pedigree Cats in The Czech Republic.

(1) Background: The aim of this study was to find the prevalence of feline hip dysplasia (HD), patellar luxation and lumbosacral transitional vertebra (LTV) in pedigree cats in the Czech Republic. (2) Methods: 107 pedigree cats at least 10 months old were recruited prospectively at the Small Animal Clinic at the University of Veterinary and Pharmaceutical Sciences Brno, CZ, between April 2019 and July 2020. (3) Results: The prevalence of hip joint dysplasia in all pedigree cats was 46.7%, of which 78% of cats had bilateral dysplasia. The HD was mainly from mild (grade 1) to moderate (grade 2); however, 6.1% of hip joints showed signs of severe HD (grade 3) in Maine Coon and Siberian cats. Patellar luxation was noted in 32.7% of the pedigree cats, was present bilaterally in 91.4% and was grade 1 or 2 in most cats. The presence of LTV was noted in 7.5% of pedigree cats. (4) Conclusions: The high prevalence of HD in pedigree cats should be considered and screening pedigree cats for HD is recommended before they are used in breeding programs.

Investigation of an alternative approach for real-time cleaning verification in the pharmaceutical industry.

Within the pharmaceutical industry, it is a regulatory requirement to ensure that pharmaceutical drug manufacturing equipment is clean prior to use. Cleaning processes of manufacturing equipment are performed using a "validated" process and subsequently verified since inadequate cleaning can result in a contaminated or adulterated product. Historically, cleanliness of equipment within Drug Substance/Product/Active Pharmaceutical Ingredient (API) manufacturing is validated and verified using direct swabbing of the equipment and subsequent analytical testing of the swab extract. In this study, a novel approach has been evaluated using a number of innovative technologies and techniques to develop and validate a methodology based on an in situ hand-held Process Analytical Technology (PAT) to verify manufacturing equipment cleanliness and eliminate swabbing and associated off-line laboratory testing. Specular reflectance Mid Infrared (Mid-IR) spectroscopy was used to detect and quantify surface residue. It is expected that this analytical technique will allow the elimination or reduction of the number of swabs and subsequent off-line analytical testing required during cleaning verification of manufacturing equipment in the pharmaceutical and biopharmaceutical industry. This study was focused on the development and validation of a Mid-IR based calibration model. The results indicate that surface a residue of 0.19 µg cm-2 for a specific molecule is detectable using a specular reflectance Mid-IR technique.

Predicting mortality in damage control surgery for major abdominal trauma.

BACKGROUND: Damage control surgery (DCS) has become well established in the past decade as the surgical strategy to be employed in the unstable trauma patient. The aim of this study was to determine which factors played a predictive role in determining mortality in patients undergoing a damage control laparotomy. MATERIALS AND METHODS: A retrospective review of all patients undergoing a laparotomy and DCS in a level 1 trauma centre over a 3-year period was performed. Twenty-nine potentially predictive variables for mortality were analysed. RESULTS: Of a total of 1 274 patients undergoing a laparotomy for trauma, 74 (6%) required a damage control procedure. The mean age was 28 years (range 14 - 53 years). The mechanism of injury was gunshot wounds in 57 cases (77%), blunt trauma in 14 (19%) and stabs in 3 (4%). Twenty patients died, giving an overall mortality rate of 27%. Factors significantly associated with increased mortality were increasing age (p=0.001), low base excess (p=0.002), pH (p<0.001), core temperature (p=0.002), and high blood transfusion requirement over 24 hours (p=0.002). CONCLUSION: The overall survival of patients after damage control procedures for abdominal trauma was excellent (73%). The main factors that are useful in deciding when to initiate DCS are age, base excess, pH and the core temperature.

A homogeneity study using NIR spectroscopy: tracking magnesium stearate in Bohle bin-blender.

A method was developed for studying mixing of cohesive pharmaceutical mixtures. A combination of accurate sampling and NIR spectroscopic analysis was developed as a suitable method to determine homogenization of magnesium stearate as a function of blending variables. A typical pharmaceutical blend containing a ratio 35:64:1 lactose, avicel, and magnesium stearate was used as a model system. The method accounted for variability of the concentration of magnesium stearate as well as variability of the excipients. Levels of magnesium stearate as low as 0.05% could be resolved by the method, and showed a predicting confidence interval above 98%.