Peer-reviewed veterinary case report
Enhancing post-cardiac arrest care for dogs and cats: a veterinary technician's guide to the RECOVER Initiative.
- Journal:
- Journal of the American Veterinary Medical Association
- Year:
- 2025
- Authors:
- Johnson, Colleen
Plain-English summary
Cardiac arrest in pets, which means their heart and breathing have stopped, can happen for various reasons. While improvements in CPR techniques have helped more pets start breathing and have their hearts beating again, many of them can have another cardiac arrest within the next day. To help these pets recover better, it's important to provide the right care after they are revived, similar to what is done for people. This includes stabilizing their heart and lungs, figuring out what caused the arrest, protecting their brain, and preventing another episode. The review discusses how veterinary care has changed and improved in these critical moments for dogs and cats.
Abstract
Cardiopulmonary arrest, the acute cessation of ventilation and perfusion, can result from various clinical conditions in veterinary patients. Advances in CPR have improved the return of spontaneous circulation rates, but most patients rearrest within 24 hours, known as the post-cardiac arrest period. Ideal postresuscitation care, as seen in human medicine, reduces morbidity and mortality by focusing on cardiopulmonary stabilization, identifying the cause of cardiopulmonary arrest, neuroprotection, and preventing recurrence. In this narrative review, we will look at how care has evolved prior to and within the Reassessment Campaign on Veterinary Resuscitation guidelines while providing a clinical overview of the post-cardiac arrest period.
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Search related cases →Original publication: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/40523635/