Tag: Diarrhoea
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Hyponatraemia, pt 1: clinical signs
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Hyponatraemia is a relatively common electrolyte disturbance encountered in critically ill patients, and the most common sodium disturbance of small animals. In most cases, this is caused by an increased retention of free water, as opposed to the loss of sodium in excess of water. Low serum sodium concentration Hyponatraemia is defined as serum concentration…
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Blood gas analysis, pt 5: metabolic acidosis and alkalosis
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Base excess (BE) and bicarbonate (HCO3-) represent the metabolic components of the acid base equation. In general, both components will change in the same direction. Decreased HCO3– and BE indicate either a primary metabolic acidosis or a metabolic compensation for a chronic respiratory alkalosis. Elevated HCO3– and BE indicate either a primary metabolic alkalosis or…
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Fluid therapy part 4: ongoing losses
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This month, we will look at the final part of a fluid therapy plan – accounting for ongoing losses. This can be challenging, but some general rules can be helpful. First, let’s recap the four parts of a fluid therapy plan: Perfusion deficit Hydration deficit Maintenance requirements Ongoing losses When considering ongoing losses, try to…
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Maintenance fluids
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A while ago we discussed the components of a fluid therapy plan and talked about hydration deficits. This week I want to touch on maintenance fluids. Maintenance rates are typically calculated using the following formulae: ml/day = 80 × bodyweight (kg)0.75 (cats) ml/day = 132 × bodyweight (kg)0.75 (dogs) or ml/day = 30 × bodyweight…
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Fluid therapy: twice maintenance just isn’t good enough
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Fluid therapy is a topic that sometimes gets overlooked by vets, partly because there is a misconception that developing fluid plans can be difficult. However, if you keep it simple, you can develop a tailored fluid therapy plan for you patient that is much better than a blanket “twice maintenance” rate. There are four basic…
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Veterinary aromatherapy: the good, the bad and the ugly
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Don’t run away! I’m not entering into the complementary and alternative medicine debates… I’ve just been thinking about the lovely smells of the vet world that make me feel good. Following a Twitter conversation with fellow blogger Nick Marsh back in 2017, I’ve been keeping a little list – a secret list. But I’m now…
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Look after yourself this Christmas
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When an owner walks into your consult room with his or her pet for its annual vaccination and check-up, what are the basic questions you ask? How is Fluffy? Then, if the owner does not immediately launch into why his or her darling furry friend is “just not himself”, you’ll probably reel off a list…
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Giardia SNAP test
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Following last week’s discussion about pancreas-specific lipase tests, this week we look at Giardia SNAP tests. Giardia is an important differential diagnosis in domestic species presenting with gastrointestinal disease, with a reported prevalence varying between 10% in household dogs and up to 100% in canine shelters and breeding colonies. Younger animals – particularly younger than…
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An acceptable degree of uncertainty
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The second I put the phone down and lie back in bed, the uncertainty arrives. Initially, it’s just a nagging feeling at the back of the mind, but a few minutes later it’s in full flow, whirring around my mind, stopping me from sleeping: did I say the right thing? It was a very simple…
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Don’t you miss them?
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Odd spot of locum work aside, I have been out of general practice for a few months now, and a number of people have asked the same thing: “Don’t you miss the patients?” That’s a tricky one – simply because the gut reaction of “of course I do” gets complicated when I start to think…