Outcome after renal transplantation in 26 dogs.

Objectives: To evaluate clinical outcome in dogs after renal transplantation and determine predictors of outcome.

Study Design: Retrospective case series.

Animals: Dogs (n = 26) that had renal allograft transplantation.

Computed tomographic lymphography of the thoracic duct by mesenteric lymph node injection.

Objective: To document a novel technique to image the thoracic duct and its tributaries by contrast enhanced computed tomography (CT) lymphography.

Study Design: Clinical report.

Animals: Dogs (n=6) idiopathic chylothorax.

Outcome of laryngeal web resection with mucosal apposition for treatment of airway obstruction in dogs: 15 cases (1992--2006).

Objective: To evaluate long-term clinical outcome in dogs with upper airway obstruction treated with laryngeal web resection and mucosal apposition.

Design: Retrospective case series.

Animals: 15 client-owned dogs with laryngeal web formation.

Hepatic volume estimation using quantitative computed tomography in dogs with portosystemic shunts.

The purpose of this study was to use quantitative computed tomography (CT) to estimate liver volume in dogs with a portosystemic shunt and to compare the liver volume in normal dogs to dogs with a shunt. Twenty-one dogs with a portosystemic shunt underwent contrast-enhanced abdominal CT for shunt characterization and preoperative planning. Six dogs without clinical signs relating to liver disease were used as a control group.

In vitro effects of the active metabolite of leflunomide, A77 1726, on feline herpesvirus-1.

Objective: To determine whether the active metabolite of leflunomide, A77 1726 (A77), inhibits replication of feline herpesvirus-1 (FHV-1) in cell culture.

Study Population: Crandell Rees feline kidney (CRFK) cell cultures.

Procedures: Cell cultures were inoculated with FHV-1 and treated simultaneously with concentrations of A77 ranging from 0 to 200microM.

Adrenalectomy and caval thrombectomy in a cat with primary hyperaldosteronism.

A 13-year-old, castrated male, domestic longhaired cat was diagnosed with primary hyperaldosteronism from an adrenal gland tumor and a thrombus in the caudal vena cava. Clinical signs included cervical ventriflexion, lethargy, weakness, inappetence, and diarrhea. Laboratory tests revealed hypokalemia, normonatremia, hyperglycemia, hypophosphatemia, and elevated creatine kinase activity.

Surgical and interventional radiographic treatment of dogs with hepatic arteriovenous fistulae.

Objective: To report outcome after surgical and interventional radiographic treatment of hepatic arteriovenous fistulae (HAVF) in dogs.

Study Design: Retrospective study.

Animals: Dogs (n=20) with HAVF.

Detection of mixed infections with "Candidatus Mycoplasma haemominutum" and Mycoplasma haemofelis using real-time TaqMan polymerase chain reaction.

The objective of this study was to evaluate the use of real-time TaqMan PCR assays for detection of coinfections with "Candidatus Mycoplasma haemominutum" (Mhm), and Mycoplasma haemofelis (Mhf), in vitro and over time in experimentally infected cats. First, the ability of each real-time PCR assay to detect and quantify mixed infections was determined in vitro by testing mixtures of plasmids containing Mhm and Mhf 16S rDNA with each assay. Subsequently, 4 specific pathogen-free (SPF) cats, 2 of which were splenectomized, were inoculated with blood from a cat infected with both Mhm and Mhf.

Incidence of and risk factors for diabetes mellitus in cats that have undergone renal transplantation: 187 cases (1986-2005).

Objective: To compare incidence of diabetes mellitus in cats that had undergone renal transplantation with incidence in cats with chronic renal failure, compare mortality rates in cats that underwent renal transplantation and did or did not develop diabetes mellitus, and identify potential risk factors for development of posttransplantation diabetes mellitus (PTDM) in cats.

Design: Retrospective case series.

Animals: 187 cats that underwent renal transplantation.

Surgical correction of colonic duplication in a cat.

A 2-year-old, castrated male Manx cat was presented for anorexia, obstipation, and straining to defecate. Imaging tests revealed a cystic mass associated with the descending colon. Three surgical explorations over several years were performed before complete resection of the cystic mass was achieved.

Retrospective comparison of surgical ligation and transarterial catheter occlusion for treatment of patent ductus arteriosus in two hundred and four dogs (1993-2003).

Objective: To compare procedure time, complications, mortality, and short-term outcome in dogs with patent ductus arteriosus (PDA) treated by surgical ligation (SL) or transarterial coil occlusion (TCO).

Study Design: Retrospective study.

Animals: Dogs with PDA (n=204).

Epidemiologic factors associated with the anatomic location of intrahepatic portosystemic shunts in dogs.

Objective: To determine whether breed, sex, country of origin, and age are associated with anatomic location of intrahepatic portosystemic shunts (IHPSS) in dogs.

Study Design: Multi-institutional retrospective case series.

Sample Population: Dogs (n=125) with IHPSS from the veterinary teaching hospitals of the University of Florida (21), Sydney University (44), and the University of California-Davis (60).

Surgical management of left-divisional intrahepatic portosystemic shunts: outcome after partial ligation of, or ameroid ring constrictor placement on, the left hepatic vein in twenty-eight dogs (1995-2005).

Objectives: To evaluate outcome in dogs with left divisional intrahepatic portosystemic shunts (PSS) treated by partial ligation (PL) or ameroid ring constrictor (ARC) placement on the left hepatic vein.

Design: Retrospective study.

Animals: Dogs (n=28) with left divisional intrahepatic PSS.

Dried solidified blood calculi in the urinary tract of cats.

We have noted an increased number of calculi submitted to the Gerald V. Ling Urinary Stone Analysis Laboratory, University of California, Davis, that do not contain crystalline material but appear to be composed of dried solidified blood (DSB). Canine and feline laboratory records from 1986-2003 were reviewed for samples composed of >99% DSB.

Evaluation of the effects of ischemic injury and ureteral obstruction on delayed graft function in cats after renal autotransplantation.

Objective: To determine the relative importance of ischemic injury to delayed graft function (DGF) in cats.

Study Design: Experimental study.

Animals: Six intact female cats.

Use of rheolytic thrombectomy in the treatment of feline distal aortic thromboembolism.

The purpose of this prospective clinical trial was to evaluate the safety and efficacy of a commercially available rheolytic thrombectomy system in the treatment of naturally occurring feline aortic thromboembolic disease. All 6 cats enrolled in the investigation were affected at the level of the distal aorta and had signs of the disease affecting both pelvic limbs. Cats were anesthetized and an arteriotomy was performed on 1 carotid artery to gain access to the arterial system.

In vitro evaluation of the effect of a novel immunosuppressive agent, FTY720, on the function of feline neutrophils.

Objective: To use in vitro assays to evaluate the effects of a novel immunosuppressive agent, FTY720, on biological functions (migration, phagocytosis, and production of reactive-oxygen species [ROS]) of feline peripheral neutrophils and determine the cytotoxic effects of FTY720 on feline peripheral neutrophils.

Sample Population: Peripheral neutrophils obtained from 8 healthy cats.

Procedure: Peripheral neutrophils were isolated from blood samples obtained from the 8 cats and exposed to the phosphorylated form of FTY720 (FTY720-P).

Similarities in the immunoglobulin response and VH gene usage in rhesus monkeys and humans exposed to porcine hepatocytes.

Background: The use of porcine cells and organs as a source of xenografts for human patients would vastly increase the donor pool; however, both humans and Old World primates vigorously reject pig tissues due to xenoantibodies that react with the polysaccharide galactose alpha (1,3) galactose (alphaGal) present on the surface of many porcine cells. We previously examined the xenoantibody response in patients exposed to porcine hepatocytes via treatment(s) with bioartficial liver devices (BALs), composed of porcine cells in a support matrix. We determined that xenoantibodies in BAL-treated patients are predominantly directed at porcine alphaGal carbohydrate epitopes, and are encoded by a small number of germline heavy chain variable region (VH) immunoglobulin genes.

Renal transplantation in cats with calcium oxalate urolithiasis: 19 cases (1997-2004).

Objective: To determine outcome of renal transplantation in cats with renal failure associated with calcium oxalate urolithiasis.

Design: Retrospective case series.

Animals: 19 cats.

Human tissue-engineered blood vessels for adult arterial revascularization.

There is a crucial need for alternatives to native vein or artery for vascular surgery. The clinical efficacy of synthetic, allogeneic or xenogeneic vessels has been limited by thrombosis, rejection, chronic inflammation and poor mechanical properties. Using adult human fibroblasts extracted from skin biopsies harvested from individuals with advanced cardiovascular disease, we constructed tissue-engineered blood vessels (TEBVs) that serve as arterial bypass grafts in long-term animal models.

Results of clinical renal transplantation in 15 dogs using triple drug immunosuppressive therapy.

Objective: To evaluate outcome of renal transplantation in dogs administered cyclosporine, azathioprine, and prednisolone immunosuppression.

Study Design: Prospective clinical study.

Animals: Fifteen dogs with chronic renal failure.

Evaluation of the prevalence of infections in cats after renal transplantation: 169 cases (1987-2003).

Objective: To determine the prevalence of infections developing postoperatively, document the contribution of infection to increased risk of death, and identify risk factors associated with the development of infectious complications in cats after renal transplantation.

Design: Retrospective study.

Animals: 169 cats that received renal allograft transplants.

Identification of the V genes encoding xenoantibodies in non-immunosuppressed rhesus monkeys.

The major immunological barrier that prevents the use of wild-type pig xenografts as an alternative source of organs for human xenotransplantation is antibody-mediated rejection. In this study, we identify the immunoglobulin variable region heavy (IgV(H)) chain genes encoding xenoantibodies to porcine heart and fetal porcine islet xenografts in non-immunosuppressed rhesus monkeys. We sought to compare the IgV(H) genes encoding xenoantibodies to porcine islets and solid organ xenografts.

Evaluation of ameroid ring constrictors for treatment for single extrahepatic portosystemic shunts in dogs: 168 cases (1995-2001).

Objectives: To evaluate use of an ameroid ring constrictor (ARC) for treatment for single extrahepatic portosystemic shunts (PSSs) and identify factors associated with postoperative death, continued portosystemic shunting, and long-term outcome in dogs.

Design: Retrospective study.

Animals: 168 dogs with a single extrahepatic PSS.

Comparison of 3 techniques for ureteroneocystostomy in cats.

Objective: To compare 3 techniques for ureteroneocystostomy in cats.

Study Design: Experimental surgical study.

Animals: Fifteen adult cats.