Case report: Low dose dexmedetomidine infusion for the management of hypoglycemia in a dog with an insulinoma

ObjectiveTo describe the use of a low dose dexmedetomidine infusion as preoperative treatment for hypoglycemia secondary to a functional pancreatic tumor in a dog.Case summaryAn 8.7-year-old castrated male Hungarian Vizsla presented for further evaluation of persistent hypoglycemia after the referring veterinarian established a tentative diagnosis of insulinoma based on paired insulin and glucose measurements. Abdominal ultrasound and computed tomography demonstrated evidence of a pancreatic mass with possible hepatic metastases. Attempts to aspirate the lesions under ultrasound guidance were unsuccessful, and the dog was hospitalized overnight for planned surgical resection of the presumed pancreatic tumor and biopsy of the hepatic lesions the following day. In response to a progressive increase in patient anxiety and agitation trazodone was prescribed ~5 mg/kg orally every 8 h and gabapentin at ~7 mg/kg every 8 h. As the dog continued to remain anxious dexmedetomidine at a dose of 1 mcg/kg was administered intravenously immediately followed with an infusion of dexmedetomidine at 1 mcg/kg/h. The anxious behaviors were successfully controlled with minimal cardiovascular side effects. Serial blood glucose measurements obtained during this time demonstrated euglycemia. The dog remained euglycemic while receiving dexmedetomidine for the remainder of the pre-operative period and for duration of hospitalization following surgical resection and biopsy.New or unique information providedThis case report demonstrates a possible role for dexmedetomidine to counteract hypoglycemia in dogs with insulinomas

Spectral Graph Analysis for Process Monitoring

Process monitoring is a fundamental task to support operator decisions under ab- normal situations. Most process monitoring approaches, such as Principal Components Analysis and Locality Preserving Projections, are based on dimensionality reduction. In this paper Spectral Graph Analysis Monitoring (SGAM) is introduced. SGAM is a new process monitoring technique that does not require dimensionality reduction techniques. The approach it is based on the spectral graph analysis theory. Firstly, a weighted graph representation of process measurements is developed. Secondly, the process behavior is parameterized by means of graph spectral features, in particular the graph algebraic connectivity and the graph spectral energy. The developed methodology has been illustrated in autocorrelated and non-linear synthetic cases, and applied to the well known Tennessee Eastman process benchmark with promising results.Fil: Musulin, Estanislao. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Rosario. Centro Internacional Franco Argentino de Ciencias de la Información y Sistemas; Argentin

Sensor Selection and Optimization for Health Assessment of Aerospace Systems

Aerospace systems are developed similarly to other large-scale systems through a series of reviews, where designs are modified as system requirements are refined. For space-based systems few are built and placed into service. These research vehicles have limited historical experience to draw from and formidable reliability and safety requirements, due to the remote and severe environment of space. Aeronautical systems have similar reliability and safety requirements, and while these systems may have historical information to access, commercial and military systems require longevity under a range of operational conditions and applied loads. Historically, the design of aerospace systems, particularly the selection of sensors, is based on the requirements for control and performance rather than on health assessment needs. Furthermore, the safety and reliability requirements are met through sensor suite augmentation in an ad hoc, heuristic manner, rather than any systematic approach. A review of the current sensor selection practice within and outside of the aerospace community was conducted and a sensor selection architecture is proposed that will provide a justifiable, dependable sensor suite to address system health assessment requirements

Association of Veterinary Hematology and Transfusion Medicine (AVHTM) Transfusion Reaction Small Animal Consensus Statement (TRACS) Part 2: Prevention and monitoring

Objective To systematically review available evidence to develop guidelines for the prevention of transfusion reactions and monitoring of transfusion administration in dogs and cats. Design Evidence evaluation of the literature (identified through Medline searches through Pubmed and Google Scholar searches) was carried out for identified transfusion reaction types in dogs and cats. Evidence was evaluated using PICO (Population, Intervention, Comparison, Outcome) questions generated for each reaction type. Evidence was categorized by level of evidence (LOE) and quality (Good, Fair, or Poor). Guidelines for prevention and monitoring were generated based on the synthesis of the evidence. Consensus on the final recommendations and a proposed transfusion administration monitoring form was achieved through Delphi‐style surveys. Draft recommendations and the monitoring form were made available through veterinary specialty listservs and comments were incorporated. Results Twenty‐nine guidelines and a transfusion administration monitoring form were formulated from the evidence review with a high degree of consensus Conclusions This systematic evidence evaluation process yielded recommended prevention and monitoring guidelines and a proposed transfusion administration form. However, significant knowledge gaps were identified, demonstrating the need for additional research in veterinary transfusion medicine

Association of Veterinary Hematology and Transfusion Medicine (AVHTM) transfusion reaction small animal consensus statement (TRACS). Part 3: Diagnosis and treatment

Objective To systematically review available evidence to develop guidelines for diagnosis and treatment of transfusion‐associated reactions in dogs and cats. Design Standardized and systemic evaluation of the literature (identified through Medline via PubMed and Google Scholar searches) was carried out for identified transfusion reaction types in dogs and cats. The available evidence was evaluated using PICO (Population, Intervention, Comparison, Outcome) questions generated for each reaction type. The evidence was categorized by level of evidence (LOE) and quality (Good, Fair, or Poor). Guidelines, diagnostic, and treatment algorithms were generated based on the evaluation of the evidence. Consensus on the final guidelines was achieved through Delphi‐style surveys. Draft recommendations were disseminated through veterinary specialty listservs for review and comments, which were evaluated and integrated prior to final publication. Results Medline via PubMed and Google Scholar databases were searched. There were 14 Population Intervention Comparison Outcome questions identified and corresponding worksheets were developed focusing on the diagnosis and treatment of transfusion‐associated reactions in dogs and cats. Fourteen guidelines and four algorithms were developed with a high degree of consensus. Conclusions This systematic evidence evaluation process yielded recommended diagnostic and treatment algorithms for use in practice. However, significant knowledge gaps were identified, demonstrating the need for additional research in veterinary transfusion medicine