Causes and management of complications in wound healing

Jackie Demetriou and Silke Stein
In Practice September 2011 
Volume 33 - 392–400.

Although most wound complications are not life-threatening, they can involve prolonged periods of discomfort for the animal and extended veterinary care, as well as increased costs for owners. However, with the appropriate treatment, most wound complications can be managed successfully. This article describes what might be expected of a normal healing wound, and discusses the common causes of complications in small animals and how these can be managed.

Complications of Ovariohysterectomy and Orchiectomy in Companion Animals

Christopher A. Adin, DVM
Vet Clin Small Anim 41 (2011) 1023–1039
September 2011

Ovariohysterectomy (OVH) and orchiectomy are two of the most commonly performed surgeries in companion animal practice. Techniques for accomplishing surgical sterilization vary widely between geographic areas. While a ventral midline OVH is the standard technique in the United States, veterinarians in continental Europe commonly use a ventral midline ovariectomy, and practitioners in the United Kingdom perform flank OVH. Interestingly, retrospective analyses have shown no significant differences in the rate of stump pyometra, urinary incontinence, or other complications when these techniques are compared, so there is no strong rationale to prefer one technique over another.

Complications of Gastrointestinal Surgery in Companion Animals

Gary W. Ellison, DVM, MS
Vet Clin Small Anim 41 (2011) 915–934. 

September 2011

The small animal surgeon routinely creates wounds in the gastrointestinal (GI) tract for biopsy, for foreign body or neoplasm removal for correction of gastric dilatation volvulus, or to relieve intestinal and colonic obstruction. Unlike dehiscence of a skin wound, which is often easily remedied with appropriate local wound treatment, dehiscence of a wound of the GI tract often leads to generalized bacterial peritonitis and potentially death. Consequently, technical failures and factors that negatively affect GI healing are of great clinical significance to the surgeon. Surgery of the GI tract must be considered clean-contaminated at best, and as one progresses aborally down the GI tract, the bacterial population increases. Therefore, intraoperative spillage, wound dehiscence, or perforations that occur in the lower small intestine or colon tend to be associated with a higher mortality rate than those of the stomach or upper small intestine.

Small animal wound management: Options for wound closure

Kelly Bowlt BVM&S MRCVS 
Ed Friend BVetMed Cert SAS DECVS MRCVS
Companion Animal Vol 16 
June 2011.

This article looks at wound closure once a healthy wound bed has been achieved. It discusses simple techniques for the avoidance of skin tension and includes skin stretching and vacuum assisted wound closure. Finally, techniques and recommendations for free skin grafts and skin flaps are presented

Determining the optimal age for gonadectomy of dogs and cats

Margaret V. Root Kustritz
J Am Vet Med Assoc 2007;231:1665-1675. 

December 1, 2007.

Elective gonadectomy of dogs and cats, most commonly performed as an OHE of females and castration of males, is one of the most common veterinary  procedures performed in the United States. Increasingly, dog owners and members of the veterinary profession throughout the world have questioned the optimal age for performance of these surgeries or whether they  should even be performed as elective surgeries. The objective for the information reported here was to provide  a review of the scientific evidence, which could be used  by veterinarians to counsel clients appropriately on this issue

Orthopaedic examination of the dog - 1. Thoracic limb and 2. Pelvic Limb

Gareth Arthurs
In Practice 2011;33:126-133 doi:10.1136

The purpose of an orthopaedic examination is to evaluate a patient for the presence or absence of orthopaedic disease and to localise any abnormalities found. This examination is arguably the most critical part of an orthopaedic work-up as it is at this point that important decisions are made with regard to selecting further diagnostic tests and/or discussing treatment options and prognosis. This article, the first of two, considers the need for a systematic approach to the orthopaedic examination and discusses how this might be applied to the thoracic limb. Part 2, to be published in the April issue of In Practice, will discuss how to perform an orthopaedic examination on the pelvic limb. An article published in the January issue described the use of orthopaedic examination as part of an approach to forelimb lameness.

Orthopaedic examination of the dog - 1. Thoracic limb





Orthopaedic examination of the dog - 2. Pelvic limb