Journal of the American Veterinary Medical Association
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J. Am. Vet. Med. Assoc. · Aug 1995
Intravascular and peritoneal coagulation and fibrinolysis in horses with acute gastrointestinal tract diseases.
Components of the coagulation and fibrinolytic cascades, prothrombin and activated partial thromboplastin times, endotoxin activity, and albumin concentration were measured in blood and peritoneal fluid from 20 healthy horses and from 153 horses with acute gastrointestinal tract diseases at admission. Overall, 77% (117/153) of affected horses survived to discharge from the hospital, and 85% (82/97) of horses discharged were reported to be normal 9 to 14 months later. Significant differences in hemostatic factors were more common in peritoneal fluid than in blood. ⋯ Plasminogen-activator inhibitor type 1 activity, fibrin degradation products concentration, and prothrombin time were significantly (P < 0.05) greater in the blood of horses with colic. Survival was inversely associated with significantly (P < 0.05) greater intravascular concentrations of fibrin degradation products and fibrinogen and prothrombin time. This study revealed marked contrasts between peritoneal and intravascular coagulation and fibrinolysis in horses with colic, indicating that inferences regarding the peritoneal environment, particularly with respect to fibrinolytic capacity, should not be made on the basis of factors measured in blood.
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Yersinia pestis infection was diagnosed in 3 dogs. Clinical signs included lethargy (3 dogs), pyrexia (2 dogs), and a purulent skin lesion in the cervical region (2 dogs). ⋯ Dogs frequently are exposed to Y pestis in areas in which there are plague epizootics; however, clinical illness in dogs is rare. In the western United States, where Yersinia pestis is endemic, plague should be considered in the differential diagnosis when examining dogs with nonspecific fever and lethargy.
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J. Am. Vet. Med. Assoc. · Sep 1994
Evaluation of mesenteric lymphangiography and thoracic duct ligation in cats with chylothorax: 19 cases (1987-1992).
Mesenteric lymphangiography and thoracic duct ligation were performed on 19 cats with chylothorax between 1987 to 1992. Chylothorax was diagnosed on the basis of detection of chylomicrons in the pleural effusion or determination of a cholesterol concentration:triglyceride concentration ratio of < 1 in the pleural fluid. Preoperative medical treatment consisted of thoracentesis (19 of 19 cats) and feeding a fat-restricted diet (14 of 19 cats). ⋯ Nonchylous effusion, localized in the right hemithorax, was detected in 1 cat 2 months after thoracic duct ligation, but resolved after thoracotomy, breakdown of thoracic adhesions, and expansion of the right cranial lung lobe. Chylous effusion resolved 3 to 7 days (mean, 5.4 days) after surgery in the 10 cats that survived > 12 months after surgery. Four cats died between 2 and 13 days after thoracic duct ligation, but pleural effusion had resolved in 3 of these 4 cats at the time of death.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)