Heavy Metal Poisoning in a Cockatiel (Nymphicus hollandicus)

Background: In recent decades the demand for unconventional pets has been relatively increasing, a situation that increasingly causes veterinarians to encounter these animals in medical and surgical practice. Of these animals, the birds stand out. Animals of the order Psittaciform are known as very curious and active creatures that have the tendency to chew objectsin their environment. Among the several occurrences that lead this animal to attend the veterinary clinic, we highlight the poisoning by heavy metals, especially lead poisoning (Pb) and zinc (Zn). The objective of this work was to report a case of heavy metal intoxication in cockatiel (Nymphicus hollandicus).Case: A cockatiel was taken to the veterinarian with a history of apathy, motor incoordination, exacerbated water consumption and regurgitation. Complete anamnesis was instrumental in directing suspected heavy metal intoxication. Radiopaque particles were visualized through radiographic examination, suggesting heavy metal intoxication. The diagnosis wasconcluded through complementary examinations since the clinical symptoms are nonspecific. The treatment was intended to provide emergency intervention, avoid further absorption, use of antidotes, provide supportive measures and provide guidance to the owner. It can be concluded that the diagnosis and treatment were successful.Discussion: Metal poisoning can kill birds. The veterinarian should always seek the literature in order to perform the best support and treatment. For this, detailed history and detailed medical history must be taken into account, since the time of ingestion and the type of metal interfere with the therapeutic conduct. The use of imaging tests such as x-rays andultrasound are essential to assist the clinician, especially in cases where the tutor does not know whether or not the animal has ingested an object. In the radiographic examination, the heavy metal has the characteristic of having high radiopacity, which was evidenced in the case in question. Radiographic positions should be considered in order to avoid false negatives. In the literature, the treatment of chelation therapy is prioritized to remove the circulating heavy metal and thus act on the cause of the problem. In the case in question calcium EDTA was used intramuscularly, which showed clinical improvement in the animal after the second application. Calcium EDTA binds to metals and facilitates their transport and excretion. The use of fluid therapy is necessary as a supportive treatment to prevent kidney damage, since heavy metals are highlyharmful to nephrons. Especially in cases where the animal stops feeding and ingesting water. The use of antibiotics is essential because in many cases the animal, in addition to not feeding, becomes prone to infections due to metal toxicity, therefore, prophylactic use is essential for a better prognosis. In the case in question, the use of enrofloxacin was effective,as reported in the literature. It is recommended that the diagnosis of serum lead and zinc dosage should be made, however, due to the difficulties of obtaining the samples, and since other metals may also cause intoxication, in the case in question the treatment was started without these results. According to the results obtained in this work, the treatment described in the literature is effective and can be performed immediately to save animal life without subsequent sequelae.Keywords: bird, lead, zinc, calcium EDTA

Cardioplastia esôfago diafragmática em filhote de cão com megaesôfago congênito

O megaesôfago é uma dilatação esofágica, resultante de uma doença primária ou secundária, determinando distúrbio motor da deglutição. Dos vários procedimentos terapêuticos preconizados, o tratamento cirúrgico representa uma opção, por proporcionar alívio dos sinais clínicos e melhorar o estado nutricional. Entretanto, contestações surgem quanto à melhor técnica cirúrgica em animais com megaesôfago após tratamento conservador prévio. O presente trabalho teve como objetivo descrever a técnica cirúrgica denominada cardioplastia esôfago diafragmática em filhote de cão com megaesôfago congênito generalizado. Nesse relato, um filhote canino foi levado ao atendimento médico veterinário devido a regurgitações cada vez mais frequentes. Na radiografia contrastada, foi observado que o esôfago torácico se encontrava acentuadamente dilatado, sendo a imagem sugestiva de megaesôfago generalizado. Devido ao agravo dos episódios de regurgitação e perda de peso progressiva após duas semanas de tratamento dietético conservador, foi decidido à realização da cirurgia pela técnica de cardioplastia esôfago diafragmático. Essa técnica consiste em reduzir artificialmente a paralisia da porção torácica final do esôfago e da cardia, através da atividade contrátil do diafragma durante os ciclos respiratórios. No primeiro retorno, o tutor relatou que a cadela ainda regurgitava esporadicamente, mas com uma diminuição significante da frequência que os mesmos ocorriam

New Technique for Intrathoracic Implantation of Extraluminal Spiral Prostheses in the Trachea

Background: Extraluminal surgical procedures for intrathoracic tracheal collapse in dogs are not routinely performed. The patients are normally treated with different drugs or by intraluminal stents. However, in more severe cases, drug treatment does not always have good outcomes, and intraluminal prostheses can be correlated to several postoperative problems. In order to obtain better results, we aimed to develop a surgical technique for implantation of a new extraluminal helical prosthesis in the thoracic segment of the trachea through cervical access, associated with pneumatic mediastinoscopy for certification of the technique and minimization of possible complications.Materials, Methods & Results: Seven canine corpses (CCs) from non-traumatic death, weighing between 2 and 7 kg, were used. A ventral cervical approach to the trachea was associated with blunt mediastinal dissection. Trans cervical pneumatic mediastinoscopy was used for evaluation of the dissection and location of the implant. These were compared with the necropsy findings by the exact Wilcoxon two-sample test, with P < 0.05. The results of necropsy and mediastinoscopy did not present significant differences at P < 0.05. During the examinations, the presence of some mediastinal visceral lesions caused by the prosthesis, the integrity of the mediastinum and possible lesions to RLN and blood vessels (BV) were analyzed. We also investigated the location of the distal part of the prosthesis in the thoracic segment of the trachea and its dissection. To evaluate the technique, statistical comparison was made between mediastinoscopy and necropsy findings. The data were compared by the Wilcoxon test at 5% probability. The tracheas of all CCs were efficiently dissected, but in some cases problems that can happen during the procedure were noticed. This was checked by mediastinoscopy and confirmed by necropsy. The median of the scores was 1 (good dissection and visualization), with variance of zero for mediastinoscopy and 0.14 for necropsy. In the mediastinoscopy of one CC, the prosthesis crossed the tracheal bifurcation, involving the posterior vessels of this region, which was confirmed by necropsy. However, the dissection showed no vascular lesions. The integrity of the mediastinum was assessed only by mediastinoscopy. There was no impairment caused by any of the procedures performed. This resulted in a median score of 1 (integrity) with zero variance. When the positioning of the prosthesis was evaluated in relation to the tracheal bifurcation, identical values were obtained by both methods. The median score was 1, with variance of 0.62. No statistical differences were found between the two evaluation methods for the analyzed variables. This demonstrates the strong potential of the proposed evaluation techniques.Discussion: Our results show that the execution of the technique is possible, but some complications may occur. Mediastinoscopy as an evaluation procedure can pose some complications, these considerations are important, but by using technique proposed in this study, these factors are minimized due to the ease of technical implantation of the extraluminal tracheal stent, without the need for several instruments competing in the inflated mediastinal space. We concluded that the technique is viable and a safe method with minimal invasion for investigation and treatment of mediastinal diseases, presenting low impairment of the paratracheal structures, and that mediastinoscopy can be used as a transoperative evaluation method to minimize complications

Tétano pós-cirúrgico em canino

Tetanus is a toxic infectious disease caused by the bacterium Clostridium tetani, affecting animals and humans. An adult dog was taken to veterinary care after the tutor’s observation of paralysis with increased muscle tone, sardonic laughter, raised tail and erects ears after an orchiectomy performed by a practitioner. Based on the clinical signs and the history that the patient presented, the proposed diagnosis was tetanus. The debridement and cleaning of the surgical wound was performed and the animal was placed in a dark and calm environment. The therapy used was metronidazole and diazepam. The fluid therapy of choice was the Lactated Ringer. However, after a few hours the patient passed away.O tétano é uma doença infecciosa tóxica causada pela bactéria Clostridium tetani, que afeta animais e humanos. Um cão adulto foi levado ao atendimento veterinário após observação do tutor de paralisia com aumento do tônus muscular, riso sardônico, cauda levantada e orelhas eretas após orquiectomia realizada por médico. Com base nos sinais clínicos e na história que o paciente apresentava, o diagnóstico proposto foi tétano. Foi realizado o desbridamento e limpeza da ferida cirúrgica e o animal foi colocado em ambiente escuro e calmo. A terapia utilizada foi metronidazol e diazepam. A fluidoterapia de escolha foi a Ringer com Lactato. Porém, após algumas horas o paciente faleceu

Controle da dor crônica agudizada em cão submetido à exérese de mastocitoma.

Pain is characterized as an unpleasant sensory or emotional experience associated with actual or potential tissue damage resulting from a noxious stimulus that can lead to protein catabolism, stress, immunosuppression, delayed wound healing and acceleration of pathological processes. A dog with recurrent mastocytoma diagnosis was attended at the Veterinary Hospital of the State University of Ceará, and the lesions were widely located in the right thoracic dorsolateral region. The patient was submitted to the surgical procedure of tumor excision and the anesthetic protocol used had as main objective the control of the intraoperative and chronic oncologic pain that would be exacerbated by the surgery. The protocol used yielded good postoperative results and this reaffirms the importance of knowing the classification and pathophysiology of pain so that the veterinarian can take the most appropriate behavior, providing greater comfort and survival to the patient.A dor é caracterizada como uma experiência sensorial ou emocional desagradável associada a dano tecidual real ou potencial resultante de um estímulo nocivo que pode levar ao catabolismo protéico, estresse, imunossupressão, retardo na cicatrização de feridas e aceleração de processos patológicos. Um cão com diagnóstico de mastocitoma recorrente foi atendido no Hospital Veterinário da Universidade Estadual do Ceará e as lesões estavam amplamente localizadas na região dorsolateral torácica direita. O paciente foi submetido ao procedimento cirúrgico de excisão tumoral e o protocolo anestésico utilizado teve como objetivo principal o controle da dor oncológica intraoperatória e crônica que seria agravada pela cirurgia. O protocolo utilizado apresentou bons resultados pós-operatórios e isso reafirma a importância de conhecer a classificação e fisiopatologia da dor para que o médico veterinário possa tomar a conduta mais adequada, proporcionando maior conforto e sobrevida ao paciente