Thurid Freitag

Comparison of survival after surgical or medical treatment in dogs with a congenital portosystemic shunt

OBJECTIVE To compare survival of dogs with a congenital portosystemic shunt (CPSS) that received medical or surgical treatment. DESIGN Prospective cohort study. ANIMALS 126 client-owned dogs with a single CPSS. PROCEDURES Dogs were examined at 1 of 3 referral clinics, and a single CPSS was diagnosed in each. Dogs received medical or surgical treatment without regard to signalment, clinical signs, or results of hematologic or biochemical analysis. Survival data were analyzed via a Cox regression model. RESULTS During a median follow-up period of 579 days, 18 of 126 dogs died as a result of CPSS. Dogs treated via surgical intervention survived significantly longer than did those treated medically. Hazard ratio for medical versus surgical treatment of CPSS (for the treatment-only model) was 2.9 (95% confidence interval, 1.1 to 7.2). Age at CPSS diagnosis did not affect survival. CONCLUSIONS AND CLINICAL RELEVANCE Both medical and surgical treatment can be used to achieve long-term survival of dogs with CPSS, although results of statistical analysis supported the widely held belief that surgery is preferable to medical treatment. However, the study population consisted of dogs at referral clinics, which suggested that efficacy of medical treatment may have been underestimated. Although surgical intervention was associated with a better chance of long-term survival, medical management provided an acceptable first-line option. Age at examination did not affect survival, which implied that early surgical intervention was not essential. Dogs with CPSS that do not achieve acceptable resolution with medical treatment can subsequently be treated surgically.

Discriminant analysis of extended urovirulence genotypes distinguishes human, canine, and feline urinary Escherichia coli isolates from New Zealand

Numerous genes of E. coli encode proteins putatively important to urovirulence,for example, adhesins and protectins. Human, canine, and feline urinary E. coli isolates have been characterized on the basis of their extended urovirulence genotypes in studies that typically test for the presence or absence of about 25 of these genes. It has been reported recently that extended urovirulence genotypes of canine and feline urinary E. coli isolates overlap with, and are essentially indistinguishable from, those of human strains that cause serious extraintestinal infections. On the basis of these and other phylogenetic findings, concern has been expressed that some canine and feline uropathogenic E. coli strains pose a significant human health hazard. However, very few canine isolates and even fewer feline isolates have been adequately studied to date.

Antibotic sensitivity profiles underestimate the proportion of relapsing infections in cats with chronic renal failure and urinary tract infections

Numerous genes of E. coli encode proteins putatively important to urovirulence,for example, adhesins and protectins. Human, canine, and feline urinary E. coli isolates have been characterized on the basis of their extended urovirulence genotypes in studies that typically test for the presence or absence of about 25 of these genes. It has been reported recently that extended urovirulence genotypes of canine and feline urinary E. coli isolates overlap with, and are essentially indistinguishable from, those of human strains that cause serious extraintestinal infections. On the basis of these and other phylogenetic findings, concern has been expressed that some canine and feline uropathogenic E. coli strains pose a significant human health hazard. However, very few canine isolates and even fewer feline isolates have been adequately studied to date.

Virulence genotypes of feline urinary Escherichia coli isolates from New Zealand and Great Britain differ

Numerous genes of E. coli encode proteins putatively important to urovirulence,for example, adhesins and protectins. Human, canine, and feline urinary E. coli isolates have been characterized on the basis of their extended urovirulence genotypes in studies that typically test for the presence or absence of about 25 of these genes. It has been reported recently that extended urovirulence genotypes of canine and feline urinary E. coli isolates overlap with, and are essentially indistinguishable from, those of human strains that cause serious extraintestinal infections. On the basis of these and other phylogenetic findings, concern has been expressed that some canine and feline uropathogenic E. coli strains pose a significant human health hazard. However, very few canine isolates and even fewer feline isolates have been adequately studied to date.