Clinical Outcome After Plasma Transfusion in 28 Dogs Diagnosed with Juvenile Canine Infectious Gastroenteritis
T. Magalhães1; J. Araújo2; S. Batista3; M.J. Dourado2; H. Gregório3; L. Ribeiro3; F. Queiroga1
Introduction
The aim of this study was to describe the use of fresh frozen plasma transfusion in a juvenile canine population diagnosed with acute infectious gastroenteritis.
Methods
A retrospective search was carried out from the clinical database of two veterinary hospitals during a five-year period. The inclusion criteria were dogs up to 12 months diagnosed with acute infectious gastroenteritis and treated with plasma transfusion in addition to the standard treatment. Patient signalment, clinical presentation, blood test results and plasma transfusion information (volume and adverse effects) were recorded. Hospitalization and survival times were calculated for the dogs that had clinical recovery and those that did not survive, respectively.
Results
Twenty-eight dogs were identified: sixteen males and twelve females. Median age and median weight were 12 weeks (range: 4–44 weeks) and 3.4 kg (range: 0.4–25 kg), respectively. Seventy-five percent of the dogs were purebred (n=21) and half of these were large-sized (n=11). At admission, seventy-five percent of the patients showed hematochezia (n=21), fifty-seven percent showed fever (n=16) and forty-six percent had signs of systemic inflammatory response syndrome (n=13). Initial blood test results revealed hypoalbuminemia in seventy-one percent of the dogs (n=20) and a median nadir neutrophil count of 0.6x109/L (range: 0.1–4.5x109/L). The median plasma volume transfused was 10 ml/kg (range: 4.7–50 ml/kg). No adverse reactions were described after plasma transfusion in any of the dogs included. Survived dogs had a median hospitalization time of 8 days (range: 3–16 days). Mortality rate was 35.7% with a median survival time of 4 days (range: 1–5 days).
Conclusion
Fresh frozen plasma transfusion was a safe therapeutic approach with no reported adverse reactions, but the mortality rate was considered high. Although this result may have been biased by the severity of the disease in these animals, prospective randomized controlled trials are still needed to ascertain the therapeutic benefit of plasma transfusion in juvenile dogs diagnosed with acute infectious gastroenteritis.
Disclosures
No disclosures to report.