Causes of Death in Military Working Dogs During Operation Iraqi Freedom and Operation Enduring Freedom, 2001-2013.

Background: Military working dogs (MWDs) are a major asset in the theater of operations. Their unique abilities make them ideal for tasks such as tracking, patrol, and scent detection. MWDs deployed to a war zone are exposed to harsh environments and battlefield dangers that increase their risk of disease, injuries, and death.

Sealing of Corneal Lacerations Using Photoactivated Rose Bengal Dye and Amniotic Membrane.

Purpose: Watertight closure of perforating corneoscleral lacerations is necessary to prevent epithelial ingrowth, infection, and potential loss of the eye. Complex lacerations can be difficult to treat, and repair with sutures alone is often inadequate. In this study, we evaluated a potentially sutureless technology for sealing complex corneal and scleral lacerations that bonds the amniotic membrane (AM) to the wound using only green light and rose bengal dye.

Vaccination with a live attenuated Acinetobacter baumannii deficient in thioredoxin provides protection against systemic Acinetobacter infection.

Multi-drug resistant Acinetobacter baumannii (MDR-Ab), an opportunistic pathogen associated with nosocomial and combat related infections, has a high mortality due to its virulence and limited treatment options. Deletion of the thioredoxin gene (TrxA) from a clinical isolate of MDR-Ab resulted in a 100-fold increase in 50% lethal dose (LD) in a systemic challenge murine model. Thus, we investigated the potential use of this attenuated strain as a live vaccine against MDR-Ab.

Does small-volume resuscitation with crystalloids or colloids influence hemostasis and survival of rabbits subjected to lethal uncontrolled hemorrhage?

Background: Prehospital, small-volume resuscitation of combat casualties with a synthetic colloid (6% hydroxyethyl starch [HES] 670/0.75) has been recommended when blood or blood components are unavailable. We studied hemostatic effects of a newer synthetic colloid (6% HES, 130/0.

Physiological Consequences of Abdominal Aortic and Junctional Tourniquet (AAJT) Application to Control Hemorrhage in a Swine Model.

Introduction: Specialized tourniquets such as Abdominal Aortic and Junctional Tourniquet (AAJT) have been deployed for control of junctional hemorrhage with limited information concerning their efficacy and safety. We examined physiological effects of a 2-h abdominal application of AAJT to control groin hemorrhage in a swine model.

Methods: Anesthetized pigs were subjected to 25% controlled hemorrhage and a groin arterial injury.

Influences of limited resuscitation with plasma or plasma protein solutions on hemostasis and survival of rabbits with noncompressible hemorrhage.

Background: Plasma infusion with or without red blood cells is the current military standard of care for prehospital resuscitation of combat casualties. We examined possible advantages of early and limited resuscitation with fresh plasma compared with a single plasma protein or crystalloid solutions in an uncontrolled hemorrhage model in rabbits.

Methods: Anesthetized spontaneously breathing rabbits (3.