Peer-reviewed veterinary case report
Survival chances for older dogs after serious injury
By Young, Anda A et al.·Published in Journal of veterinary emergency and critical care (San Antonio, Tex. : 2001)·2022·Department of Veterinary Clinical Sciences, United States·View original on PubMed →
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Original publication title: Evaluation of geriatric trauma in dogs with moderate to severe injury (6169 cases): A VetCOT registry study.
- Species:
- dog
Plain-English summary
A study looked at over 6,000 dogs with moderate to severe injuries to see how age affected their chances of survival. It found that older dogs had a significantly higher risk of dying from their injuries, even with treatment. Specifically, older dogs faced greater mortality risks when they had moderate trauma. This information can help veterinarians assess treatment options and prognosis for older dogs with serious injuries, emphasizing the need for careful monitoring and possibly more aggressive treatment in these cases.
People also search for: why is my older dog not recovering from injury · dog trauma survival rates · treatment options for injured senior dogs
Abstract
OBJECTIVE: To examine geriatric classification as a predictor of survival in moderate to severely injured dogs denoted by animal trauma triage (ATT) scores ≥3 or modified Glasgow Coma Scale (mGCS) scores ≤14. DESIGN: Retrospective observational cohort study utilizing data collected between September 2013 and May 2019 with follow-up until death or hospital discharge. SETTING: Thirty-one trauma centers including university teaching hospitals and private referral centers. ANIMALS: A total of 6169 dogs entered into the Veterinary Committee on Trauma Registry with complete data entry including age, weight, outcome, mGCS (≤14), and/or ATT (≥3). INTERVENTIONS: None. MEASUREMENTS AND MAIN RESULTS: The effect of geriatric classification on survival was estimated using shared-frailty cox proportional hazard models. Model 1 dependent variables: death despite intervention or euthanasia due to grave prognosis. Model 2 dependent variables: death by euthanasia due to financial influence or combined influence of finances and grave prognosis. Model 3 evaluated interactions between geriatric classification and moderate versus severe trauma. The shared-frailty models controlled for contributing site as a random effect and other confounding variables, including trauma severity. Model 1: geriatrics had a significantly increased hazard risk (HR) for death (HR = 1.48, P < 0.0001). Model 2: geriatrics had an insignificant increased HR for death (HR = 1.34, P = 0.08). Model 3: geriatrics demonstrated significantly increased mortality risk with moderate level trauma. Additional Model 1 variables independently associated with mortality include ATT perfusion, neurologic, respiratory subscores, mGCS motor subscore, weight, and spinal trauma. Additional Model 2 variables independently associated with mortality include ATT perfusion subscore and neuter status. In general, statistical differences between cohorts were found with regard to lactate, PCV, total protein, and glucose. CONCLUSIONS: Among moderately injured dogs who experienced death despite intervention or euthanasia due to grave prognosis, mortality risk is significantly higher in geriatrics as compared to nongeriatrics.
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Search related cases →Original publication on PubMed: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/35129280/