Aspectos Nutricionais na Doença Renal Crônica em Cães

It is understood by Chronic Renal Failure (CRF) or Stage IV Chronic Kidney Disease (CKD) the morbid state in which there is a substantial and irreversible loss of functional capacity, metabolic and endocrine function in both kidneys, leading to a framework of dehydration, azotemia, electrolyte imbalance, anemia, uremic syndrome, secondary hyperparathyroidism, among other conditions that make the patient's life without treatment unfeasible. An adequate nutritional support to patients with CKD at any stage aims to maintain a good clinical condition and an attempt to delay the progression of the disease. The basis of a diet for patients with CKD is the restriction in this protein being of high biological value, low-phosphorus, high energy density, fiber and antioxidants combined with a good dietary practices that allow the patient a good quality of life

Tratamento farmacológico da epilepsia em cães

Seizure is a clinical manifestation of abnormal neuronal hyperactivity of the cerebral cortex, presentation clinical varies according to the location and extent of the brain. The classic seizure begins with an inicial period, named prodrome, followed by the aura, the ictus and finally the post-ictus phase. Seizures can be generalized or focal/partial types. Focal seizures with secondary generalization are the most common type in dogs. The seizure can be divided etiologically in intracraneal (idiopathic epilepsy; sintomatic; probably sintomatic epilepsy) and extracraneal disorders. After determining the etiology of seizures and critical analysis of the frequency, severity, and worry they cause to the owner, you should make the decision whether to launch an anticonvulsant drug therapy. Although the ideal is the elimination of seizures, the real goal should be to decrease the frequency and intensity of crises, without affecting the quality of life of patients taking the drugs used side effects acceptable. The veterinary should consider the bioavailability of the drug, contraindications, toxicity, drug interactions, the amount of daily administration, the availability of the owner and the cost of therapy. Seizures can be controlled in about 70- 80% of the dogs and in the majority of the cats when treated with Phenobarbital alone. Addition of a second drug (usually potassium bromide), decreases the number of seizures in more that 50% in about 70-80% of dogs. However, approximately 20-30% of dogs are refractory to this treatment. In these cases, it will be necessary to think in other pharmacological alternatives, like felbamate, gabapentin, levetiracetam, zonisamid, among others. It has been concluded that... (Complete abstract click eletronic access below)

Subluxação atlantoaxial canina

The atlantoaxial subluxation or luxation is an instability of this articulation that produces excessive flexion of this joint causing the cranial aspect of the axis to rotate dorsally into the vertebral channel with subsequent spinal cord compression. This disorder is most commonly found in young small breed dogs. The diagnosis of this disease is done by survey radiographs, where there is a larger distance between the atlas dorsal arch and the axis spinal process characterize the atlantoaxial subluxation. Surgical stabilization is the treatment of choice and multiple implants show the best results to stabilize the atlantoaxial joint. The main complications are sudden death or implant failure. The sudden death happens because of cardiorespiratory arrest and it is most likely caused by brainstem iatrogenic trauma. However, a larger study comparing different surgical stabilization techniques should be performed to evaluate relative success rates in dogs that have the same initial neurologic status

Hipotireoidismo em cães: aspectos gerais

Hypothyroidism is a common endocrine disorder in dogs caused by insufficient production and secretion of thyroid hormones. Most affected dogs have primary hypothyroidism that results from lymphocytic thyroiditis, idiopathic thyroid atrophy, or more rarely, neoplastic destruction. Secondary hypothyroidism resulting from inadequate secretion of thyrotropin (thyroid-stimulating hormone –TSH) from the pituitary gland is less commonly recognized. Tertiary hypothyroidism resulting from a deficiency of hypothalamic thyrotropin-releasing hormone (TRH) has not been documented in dogs. The diagnosis of hypothyroidism in dogs is made on the basis of clinical findings, results of routine laboratory and thyroid gland function tests and response to thyroid hormone replacement. Unfortunately, these tests have high sensitivity, but low specificity, for use in the diagnosis of hypothyroidism. Thyroid hormone supplementation is indicated for the treatment of confirmed hypothyroidism and for the diagnoses of the disease through clinical response to trial therapy

Fístula infraorbitária associada à doença periodontal em cães

Veterinary Dentistry has grown considerably in recent years. This growth, associated to increase of knowledge among pet owners regarding responsible ownership of their pets, resulted in growing concern about the oral health of the animals that already can be observed at veterinary clinics. Among the oral diseases in dogs, infraorbital fistula, so called carnassial” fistula, is a periapical osteolytic lesion of the fourth premolar (4 SPM), often associated with periodontal disease. In its early stages, is characterized clinically by a swelling in the region of the jawbone before the formation of the fistula and leakage of a liquid serosanguineous or purulent secretion. Because of these clinical features, it is often misdiagnosed as a skin condition unrelated to the teeth. It is very important to obtain intraoral radiographs to confirm the diagnosis for performing the most appropriate treatment, according to the cause of the injury

Síndrome urêmica em cães com doença renal crônica

Uremic syndrome, arising from kidney malfunction, consists of a set of systemic changes caused by the accumulation of toxic substances to the body. Since, with the advance of medicine, the animals lived more reaching advanced age and entering thus on track of senility, chronic renal disease, became a common complaint in the routine of the ambulatory. This high rate of morbidity generates an increased need for clarification of pathophysiology involved in this disease. The components of the uremic syndrome include water and sodium imbalance, anemia, intolerance to carbohydrate, neurological disorders, disorders of the gastrointestinal tract, osteoarthritis, immunological incompetence and metabolic acidosis. The clinical manifestations occur in isolation or in combination. In most cases canines patients are subject to an assessment when the kidney disease has evolved to the final stage with uremic syndrome and installed already, under these conditions, the prognosis is reserved

Utilização da acupuntura no tratamento de cães com discopatia intervertebral

The intervertebral disc diseases have a high casuistic in clinical routines veterinary among dogs. These conditions can cause pain, paresis or paralysis of limbs depending on the degree of injury. Clinical signs are not limited to the intervertebral disc, other anatomical parts are included. In conventional medicine, treatment may be surgical or clinical, by the use of corticosteroids with muscle relaxants. Acupuncture was an alternative to treating these diseases due to its anti-inflammatory and analgesic effects. Although there are few studies for the treatment of discopathies, acupuncture triggers the release of substances such as dynorphins, beta-endorphins and serotonin, among others; that act inhibiting somatic and visceral pain. Electroacupuncture is used to potentiate the effects of acupuncture. It can be performed with different frequencies according to the clinical evolution. However there are different opinions related to the greater efficacy in relation to acupuncture. The restraint and monitoring of the treated animal are important factors for its recovery. The association between acupuncture and conventional treatment (surgical or clinical) achieved better results than acupuncture alone. This proves that acupuncture can be considered an option in order to minimize the complications of surgery or assist in patient recovery

Eletroquimioterapia em cães e gatos

The eletrochemotherapy is a new treatment option for neoplasms that involves the application of chemotherapeutic drugs endovenously or intralesionally, associated with local severe and short duration electrical pulses. The electrical pulses promote destabilization of the cell membrane, causing transitory pore formation and facilitating the entry of chemotherapeutic agents inside the cells, increasing its cytotoxicity. This therapy allows for lower doses of chemotherapy drugs compared to conventional chemotherapy, resulting in the decrease of side effects and costs of treatment. The eletrochemotherapy has proved effective in the treatment of cancer regardless of its histological origin and location. This review aims to highlight possibilities to use this treatment in Veterinary Oncology

Exames laboratoriais importantes no diagnóstico da Piometra canina

Canine Pyometra is a uterine disease that occurs in sexually mature bitches, with higher incidence in nulliparous and animals over 4 years and is characterized by presenting an accumulation of pus in the uterine lumen, usually occurring in diestrus. Laboratory tests are important tools for the detection of metabolic abnormalities associated with sepsis and renal function, which are serious consequences of pyometra. In blood the main findings are normochromic non-regenerative anemia, presence of dehydration, and sometimes thrombocytopenia. The WBC count may be normal but most often occurs a neutrophilic leukocytosis with a left shift, monocytosis and the presence of toxic neutrophils. In less than 1 / 3 of the animals the presence of azotemia is present and a density lower than 1035 is detected in the urine of almost 90% of bitches which may be in normal range at the onset of the desease. Urinary protein loss is rare but the protein may be elevated in the reagent strip due to urinary contamination by uterine secretion. The increase of gamma-glutamyltransferase (GGT), alkaline phosphatase (ALP), aspartate aminotransferase (AST) and creatine kinase (CK) may be present, indicating disorders in the liver. Currently, additional laboratory tests are being studied for the diagnosis of pyometra and its prognosis, such as the measurement of C-reactive protein and fibrinogen for monitoring the recovery of the inflammatory process and the urine electrophoresis to characterize the origin of proteinuria in these animals . The aim of this work is to review the literature on the main laboratory tests that aid the diagnosis of Pyometra

Espondilomielopatia cervical caudal em cães: diagnóstico por imagem

The Caudal Cervical Spondylomyelopathy, also known as “Wobbler syndrome” is a neurological disorder that affects mainly breeds of large and giant size, especially Doberman pinsher and Great danes. Its aetiology is multifactorial and leads to a narrowing of the spinal canal by morphological and positional caudal cervical vertebrae (C5, C6 and C7), causing compression of the spinal cord and nerve roots. The clinical signs presented by the affected animals are progressive ataxia of hindlimbs and, later, the forelimbs, sometimes progressing to tetraparesis. Neck pain may be present. The diagnosis is made through the association of clinical signs and diagnostic imaging such as radiography, myelography, computed tomography and magnetic resonance imaging. According to the classification of the lesion obtained by imaging examinations, the conservative or surgical treatment is established and the prognosis is variable in accordance with the degree of affection of the spinal cord

Síndromes paraneoplásicas hematológicas em cães

Tumoral masses can cause several direct problems in the organism, such as invading organs and altering their functions, leading to other problems such as the Paraneoplastic syndrome. The paraneoplastic syndrome is an alteration in the structure and function of the body due to the non-invasive actions of the tumor, for example, liberating hormones, peptides, cytokines and leading to cross reactions between normal tissues. The syndrome can affect different locations in the body, being that some are indicative of specific tumors, however the interpretation of the clinical and pathological findings referring to this syndrome should be utilized in the diagnostic and treatment. In the hematological paraneoplastic syndrome, there are alterations that occur due to indirect actions of the tumor on the blood cellular elements and the coagulation system, and that are generally detected in routine clinical and laboratorial exams. This study objective is to aboard some hematological paraneoplastic syndromes in dogs such as: anemia, thrombocytopenia, neutrophilic leukocytosis, hypergammaglobulinemia and erythrocytosis, emphasizing the different etiologies that may assist in differential diagnosis and the principal neoplasm related to this syndrome. Besides this, the early discovery and treatment of the paraneoplatic syndrome is important as the tumor itself, as it improves the prognostic and quality of life of the patient

Osteossarcoma apendicular: revisão de literatura

Osteosarcoma is the most common primary bone cancer in dogs. It affects most commonly dogs of big or giant breeds with 7 to 8 years and the etiology is unknown. Osteosarcoma is defined as a bone matrix-producing malignant mesenchymal tumor and has a predilection for the metaphyseal region of appendicular skeleton, however, it can affect axial skeleton and soft tissues. Distal radius is the most commonly affected site. The definitive diagnosis of osteosarcoma can be obtained with history, physical examination, radiographs and biopsy. Lung is the most common organ for metastatic disease. The mainly treatment for osteosarcoma is limb amputation and systemic chemotherapy for metastatic disease control. Limb-sparing surgery is a viable alternative to amputation for dogs with concomitant conditions that impede limb amputation. Palliative treatments for osteosarcoma have been studied such as local and systemic radiotherapy, immunotherapy and biphosphonates. This study has the objective of presenting the aspects of diagnosis and treatment for appendicular osteosarcoma

Hiperadrenocorticismo atípico em cães

The endocrine diseases, notably Cushing's disease, are of great importance from the morbid pictures that affect the canine species. Due to the imprecision of the standard tests, the HAC can be a diagnosis difficult to confirm. Often, the clinical manifestations and biochemical and hematological findings support the diagnosis of HAC, but endocrine tests are normal or inconclusive. The excessive production of ACTH may, in the adrenals, not only stimulate the increase of glucocorticoids, but also of sex hormones. In recent studies, the concentrations of sex hormones were used as parameters to check the adrenal gland function in animals with suspected Cushing's disease, suggesting that high serum concentrations of 17 hydroxyprogesterone (17OHP) and other sex steroid hormones would be the cause of the so called atypical hyperadrenocorticism

Análise de metilação do gene FOXE1 em carcinoma de células escamosas em cães: padronização metodológica

It is believed that epigenetic mechanisms such as DNA methylation are important for the tumorigenesis and maintenance of the altered state of tumor cells. DNA methylation occurs by the addition of a methyl group to carbon 5 of cytosine, catalyzed by the enzyme DNA methyl-transferase, which can change the expression of a gene, including the tumor suppressor genes. In human squamous cell carcinoma, several features have shown the etiological role of genes in tumor development. Among them, FOXE1 gene (forkhead box E1 - thyroid transcription factor) is presented with an important role in susceptibility to disease. Similarly the FOXE1 methylation pattern could alter the expression of this gene in dogs and predisposed to tumor on. Therefore, this study aims to investigate in dogs, the validity of the strategy employed in humans to analyze the FOXE1 methylation status. DNA extraction from fresh frozen tumoral samples was performed by Wizard Genomic® DNA Purification Kit. The methylation status was determined by MSP-PCR (methylation-specific polymerase chain reaction), using 2.0 ng of DNA treated with sodium bisulphate. One hundred micrograms of bisulphite-modified DNA was amplified using primers specific for either methylated or unmethylated DNA (primers sequences are available at http://pathology2.jhu.edu/pancreas/primer.pdf). The analysis of fragments was loaded on to 7% polyacrylamide gels and silver nitrate staining. In this stage of technical approach, 60% were FOXE1 hypermethylated. In conclusion, it was observed that the standard technique for assessing the methylation pattern of gene FOXE1 in humans can be used for the same evaluation in dogs. The correlation of these molecular data with clinical and histopathological parameters may have diagnostic and prognostic value and still be used as a tumor marker for therapeutic decision and surgical approach

Alterações hematológicas associadas ao hifema em cães

Hyphema is an intraocular hemorrhage that can result from many ocular and/or systemic disorders. It is an important clinical sign, since it may appear in the initial stages of some diseases or haematological disorders, acting as an initial marker for early diagnosis. The hematologic disturbances that predispose animals to present hyphema are: Thrombocytopenia, von Willebrand Disease, Scott Syndrome, Disseminated Intravascular Coagulation and Hyperviscosity Syndrome due to Multiple Myeloma. Each of the differential diagnoses due to hematological changes from the appearance of hyphema in dogs shows clinical relevance and particular ocular signs