Peer-reviewed veterinary case report
Fresh frozen plasma treatment for puppies with neonatal sepsis
By Pereira, Keylla Helena Nobre Pacífico et al.·Published in Research in veterinary science·2026·Department of Veterinary Clinic, Brazil·View original on PubMed →
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Original publication title: Efficacy of fresh frozen plasma immunotherapy as an adjuvant treatment of neonatal sepsis in puppies.
- Species:
- dog
Plain-English summary
A group of 16 puppies diagnosed with sepsis showed serious symptoms like low heart rate, low blood sugar, and high lactate levels. They were treated with either fresh frozen plasma along with antibiotics or antibiotics alone. The puppies receiving the plasma had better improvements in their blood tests and overall health, with no deaths in that group, while the control group had a 22% mortality rate. This study suggests that fresh frozen plasma can be a helpful treatment for puppies with neonatal sepsis, improving their chances of recovery.
People also search for: puppy sepsis treatment · fresh frozen plasma for puppies · neonatal sepsis in dogs · puppy low blood sugar treatment
Abstract
The aim of this study was to evaluate the effects of fresh frozen plasma (passive immunotherapy) on clinical and laboratorial findings in puppies treated for neonatal sepsis. A total of thirty-one puppies were included in this study, 16 were diagnosed with sepsis and treated either with plasma + antibiotic (plasma group, n = 7; PG) or antibiotic only (control group, n = 9; CG); whereas 15 were healthy neonates (HG). The groups were evaluated at the first appointment (M0), after 24 (M24), 48 (M48), 72 h (M72) and at the end of treatment (ME). At M0, neonates with sepsis presented a reduction (p < 0.05) in heart rate (HR), reflexes, blood glucose, body temperature, and leukocytes (leukopenia), with an increase (p < 0.05) in lactate and troponin I, compared to HG puppies. During treatment, significant improvement of laboratory parameters was observed in PG compared to CG puppies, with higher IgM level at M24, and higher blood glucose and leukocyte count at M24 and M48 (p < 0.05). At ME, the lactate was lower in PG than CG puppies (p < 0.05). There were no differences in the serum IgG or IgA concentrations among groups. Evaluating clinical and laboratory improvement between time points within the same group, differences (p < 0.05) were observed in the PG puppies, which increased blood glucose, temperature, leukocytes count, and IgM at M24 compared to M0. In the CG, a decrease in IgM concentration was detected at M24 compared to M0 (p < 0.05). Approximately 57% (4/7) of the neonates in the PG presented leukograms without alterations at M24. In the CG, leukograms without alterations were observed only at M72 in 55.5% (5/9) of the animals. The mortality rate was 22% (2/9) in the CG. There was no mortality in the PG. This was the first study using fresh frozen plasma as an adjuvant in the treatment of neonatal sepsis in dogs and evaluation of biomarkers in diagnosis. It was concluded that sepsis led to changes in the physiological parameters of neonatal dogs, demonstrating that the evaluation of leukocytes, troponin I and lactate can be used in the diagnosis and monitoring of sepsis. It was concluded that, besides being an important source of IgM, fresh frozen plasma stimulated healing of puppies with neonatal sepsis, by prompt (within 24 h) improvement in both clinical and laboratory parameters. Plasma therapy has been shown to be beneficial in the treatment of sepsis and is a promising therapeutic strategy for reducing neonatal mortality.
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Search related cases →Original publication on PubMed: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/41576601/