Fluorescent Light Energy in the Management of Multi Drug Resistant Canine Pyoderma: A Prospective Exploratory Study

The increase in prevalence of staphylococcal antimicrobial resistance has been also associated with pyoderma in dogs, and prolonged antibiotic treatment, as often needed in severe cases of pyoderma, has been related to influencing possible development of multidrug resistance (MDR). Fluorescent light energy (FLE) has been indicated to improve pyoderma lesions as adjunct therapy to systemic antibiotics. In the present study, we evaluated the effect of FLE on clinical signs of MDR canine deep pyoderma (CDP) and interdigital furunculosis (CIF) when administered as solely management. Sixteen client-owned dogs affected by CIF (five dogs) and CDP (eleven dogs) were scored using a dedicated scoring system and received a single FLE applications twice weekly, until clinical resolution was achieved. Mean time to achieve complete resolution was 5.20 3.56 weeks (median 3 weeks) for CIF cases and 4.18 1.47 weeks (median 4 weeks) for CDP ones. FLE shows promise as an aid to managing clinical signs while reducing reliance on antibiotics for MDR CDP and CIF. In this study, FLE was responsible for the decrease in lesion scores and resolution of MDR pyoderma infection without any adjunct therapy, having a potential useful role to play in antibiotic stewardship programs, efficiently promoting complete clinical resolution of MDR lesions while optimizing the use of antibiotics

Combining echo and natriuretic peptides to guide heart failure care in the outpatient setting: a position paper

BACKGROUND: Chronic heart failure (HF) is a relevant and growing public health problem. Although the prognosis has recently improved, it remains a lethal disease, with a mortality that equals or exceeds that of many malignancies. Furthermore, chronic HF is costly, representing a large and growing drain on healthcare resources. METHODS: This narrative review is based on the material searched for and obtained via PubMed up to May 2017. The search terms we used were: "heart failure, echocardiography, natriuretic peptides" in combination with "treatment, biomarkers, guidelines". RESULTS: Particularly, hospitalization contributes to the greatest proportion of expenditure. Recent studies have supported the value of natriuretic peptides (NPs) and Doppler echocardiographic biomarkers of increased left ventricular (LV) filling pressures or pulmonary congestion as tools to scrutinize patients with impending clinically overt HF. Therefore, combination of pulsed-wave tissue and blood-flow Doppler with NPs appears valuable in guiding HF management in the outpatient setting. In as much as both the echo and the plasma levels of NPs may reflect the presence of fluid overload and elevations of LV filling pressures, integrating NP and echocardiographic biomarkers with clinical findings may help the cardiologist to identify high-risk patients, i.e. to recognize whether a patient is stable or the condition is likely to evolve into decompensated HF, to optimize treatment, to improve the prognosis and to reduce re-hospitalization. CONCLUSION: we discussed the rationale and the clinical significance of combining follow-up echo and NP assessment to guide management of ambulatory patients with chronic HF

Hypertrophic osteopathy associated with a bronchial foreign body (grass awn) in a dog: a case report

A five-year-old dog was referred with a five-month history of lethargy, decreased appetite, cough and intermittent forelimb lameness. Radiographs revealed an intra-thoracic lesion and a marked periosteal bone apposition of the second digit on the left forelimb. As it was palisading and circumferential, the latter appeared typical of hypertrophic osteopathy (HO). A grass awn in a sub-lobar ramification of the right caudal bronchus was identified and removed by bronchoscopy. At three months follow-up, the digit appeared clinically normal. On radiographs the periosteal bone reaction had decreased, indicative of resolving hypertrophic osteopathy. Thoracic radiographs showed no abnormalities five months after foreign body removal and the bone lesion on the digit had disappeared. Successful treatment of the pulmonary foreign body abscess led to spontaneous regression of HO and eventually to complete resolution of clinical signs. To the authors’ knowledge, this is the first reported case of HO secondary to a bronchial-pulmonary grass an abscess

Anesthetic Management during Cesarean Section in English Bulldogs

The authors describe their experience with the management of the perioperative period, general anesthesia and the postoperative period in English bulldogs undergoing elective cesarean section and its effect on the neonates. The anesthetist for animals undergoing cesarean operation must be aware of any special needs, not only of the patient undergoing surgery, but also of the neonates. Anesthetic drugs administered to the pregnant patient will readily cross the placenta and affect them, with the exception of local anesthetics. Pregnant female patients are at increased anesthetic risk due to pregnancy-associated physiological alterations, such as altered pulmonary function. The anesthetist is often called to perform anesthesia on brachycephalic dogs for an elective cesarean section. Due to their conformation, these animals may have one or more anatomical abnormalities of the upper airways, which compromise the ability to ventilate adequately. The induction and recovery phases of anesthesia can be extremely dangerous in these patients, but the maintenance phase is generally fairly straightforward because the airways are controlled during maintenance. In addition, vagal tone is frequently high and this can contribute towards significant bradycardia and further airway narrowing. All these reasons make general anesthesia in brachycephalic dogs undergoing cesarean section rather complicated

EFFECT OF PELVIC POSITIONING AND TORSIONAL DEFORMITY ON CANINE ACETABULAR MORPHOLOGY WITH COMPUTED TOMOGRAPHY: A PHANTOM STUDY

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Use of Nanohydroxyapatite in Regenerative Therapy in Dogs Affected by Periodontopathy: Preliminary Results

Background: The present study aims to analyse the in vivo behaviour of nanohydroxyapatite and to assess its regenerative capacity in dogs affected by periodontal disease. Methods and findings: The dogs employed in the study were randomly subdivided into a control group and an experimental group. After clinical, instrumental and radiological examinations, all the subjects underwent dental prophylaxis and a bioptic sample was taken. A histopathological examination of the periodontal tissues, in correspondence to teeth with periodontopathy ranging between stages 2 and 3, followed. Regenerative therapy with applications of nanohydroxyapatite was administered only to the dogs of the experimental group. After a period of between 35 and 40 days, a further clinical, instrumental and radiological examination was carried out and a bioptic sample taken solely on the dogs whose histological examinations showed changes ascribable to periodontal disease. The results of the histopathological examination demonstrated that only the dogs in the experimental group, who underwent dental prophylaxis together with the administration of nanohydroxyapatite, showed clear signs of improvement with respect to their initial condition. Conclusions: In conclusion the study demonstrated that the nanohydroxyapatite represents a valid osteoconductive and osteoinductive graft product and confirmed its regenerative potential in periodontal therapy in dogs

Prevalence and predictors of latent tuberculosis infection among Italian State Policemen engaged in assistance to migrants: A national cross-sectional study

Objectives: Better knowledge about tuberculosis (TB) and latent TB infection (LTBI) epidemiology is a crucial step for the development of effective strategies towards the control and elimination of this deadliest and persistent health threat. No study has investigated LTBI epidemiology in policemen who act as an interface with cross-border migrants. Methods: A survey to measure the LTBI prevalence and assess the demographic, professional and clinical features potentially associated with tuberculin skin test (TST) positivity was performed in Italian State Police (ISP) employees engaged, even occasionally, in relief activities, hospitality, photographical identification, escorting and accompanying of migrants, regardless of contact with active TB cases. Variables potentially associated with TST positivity were evaluated with univariate and multivariate analysis. Results: From September to December 2014, 4225 ISP workers underwent TST screening and completed the questionnaire for data collection, according to study procedures. The TST was positive in 9.9% of individuals: no active TB cases were registered among the entire study population. Age, previous BCG vaccination and work category resulted independently associated with TST positivity. Conclusions: This is the first study providing updated data about LTBI epidemiology among ISP employees engaged in assistance to migrants and furnish preliminary evidence of possible associations between TST positivity and different conditions that need to be deeply investigated with prospective studies

Use of Nanohydroxyapatite in regenerative therapy in dogs affected by periodontopathy: preliminary results

Nanosized ceramics may represent a promising class of bone graft substitutes due to their improved osseointegrative and osseoinductive properties. Nanohydroxyapatite binds itself to the bone and favours bone healing by stimulation of osteoblast activity (Singh et al., 2012). The present study aims to analyse the in vivo behaviour of nanohydroxyapatite and to assess its regenerative capacity in dogs affected by periodontal disease. Twenty-eight dogs of different breeds, aged between 5 and 15 years, were employed in the study and were randomly subdivided into a control group and an experimental group. After clinical, instrumental and radiological examinations to estimate the severity of the disease, all the subjects underwent dental prophylaxis and a bioptic sample was taken. A histopathological examination of the periodontal tissues, in correspondence with teeth with periodontopathy ranging between grades II and III, followed. Regenerative therapy with applications of nanohydroxyapatite was administered only to the dogs of the experimental group. After a period of between 30 and 42 days, a further clinical, instrumental and radiological examination was carried out and a bioptic sample taken solely on the dogs whose histological examinations showed changes ascribable to periodontal disease. The results of the histopathological examination demonstrated that the subjects belonging to the control group, who only underwent the dental prophylaxis, in no case showed any histopathological improvement. In 6 out of 14 cases, the situation remained stationary and in the remaining 8 there was a clear deterioration. On the contrary, all the dogs in the experimental group, who underwent dental prophylaxis together with the administration of nanohydroxyapatite, showed clear signs of improvement with respect to their initial condition. Furthermore, there was no sign of any inflammatory reaction in the areas which had been treated with nanohydroxyapatite. In conclusion the study demonstrated the regenerative potential of nanohydroxyapatite in periodontal therapy. In fact, its use as a graft material has produced very satisfactory results, which have been supported without doubt by the histopathological examinations. Thus, nanohydroxyapatite represents a valid osteoconductive and osteoinductive graft product in dogs. However, more research is needed and it is, therefore, imperative to extend the case histories and further standardize diagnostic methods. Singh VP, Nayak DG, Uppoor AS, Shah D: Clinical and radiographic evaluation of Nano-crystalline hydroxyapatite bone graft (Sybograf) in combination with bioresorbable collagen membrane (Periocol) in periodontal intrabony defects. Dental Research Journal, 2012; 9: 60-67

Effects of Prunus cerasus L. Seeds and Juice on Liver Steatosis in an Animal Model of Diet-Induced Obesity

The accumulation of adipose tissue increases the risk of several diseases. The fruits-intake, containing phytochemicals, is inversely correlated with their development. This study evaluated the effects of anthocyanin-rich tart cherries in diet-induced obese (DIO) rats. DIO rats were exposed to a high-fat diet with the supplementation of tart cherry seeds powder (DS) and seed powder plus juice (DJS). After 17 weeks, the DIO rats showed an increase of body weight, glycaemia, insulin, and systolic blood pressure. In the DS and DJS groups, there was a decrease of systolic blood pressure, glycaemia, triglycerides, and thiobarbituric reactive substances in the serum. In the DJS rats, computed tomography revealed a decrease in the spleen-to-liver attenuation ratio. Indeed, sections of the DIO rats presented hepatic injury characterized by steatosis, which was lower in the supplemented groups. In the liver of the DIO compared with rats fed with a standard diet (CHOW), a down-regulation of the GRP94 protein expression and a reduction of LC3- II/LC3-I ratio were found, indicating endoplasmic reticulum stress and impaired autophagy flux. Interestingly, tart cherry supplementation enhanced both unfolded protein response (UPR) and autophagy. This study suggests that tart cherry supplementation, although it did not reduce body weight in the DIO rats, prevented its related risk factors and liver steatosis