Peer-reviewed veterinary case report
Dog dies from fat embolism during hip replacement surgery
By Terrell, Scott P et al.·Published in Journal of the American Animal Hospital Association·2004·Department of Pathobiology, United States·View original on PubMed →
PetCaseFinder translated the abstract of this peer-reviewed paper into plain English so pet owners can read it. We do not publish original research — every detail traces back to the citation above. How we work →
Original publication title: Fatal intraoperative pulmonary fat embolism during cemented total hip arthroplasty in a dog.
- Species:
- dog
Plain-English summary
A 3-year-old German shepherd died unexpectedly during surgery for a hip replacement. The veterinarian found that the dog had severe fluid buildup in the lungs and congestion in the liver and kidneys, which indicated a serious complication known as a fat embolism. This occurs when fat globules enter the bloodstream and block blood vessels, leading to sudden respiratory failure. While fat embolism is a known risk in human surgeries, it is rare in dogs and typically not fatal. Unfortunately, in this case, the dog did not survive the procedure.
People also search for: dog hip surgery risks · German shepherd surgery complications · sudden death during dog surgery
Abstract
A 3-year-old, German shepherd dog died suddenly during cemented total hip arthroplasty. Gross necropsy findings included severe pulmonary edema and congestion as well as congestion of the liver and kidneys. Acute pulmonary embolism was suspected as the cause of death. Microscopic examination of hematoxylin and eosin-stained, formalin-fixed, and oil red O-stained frozen tissue sections confirmed the presence of large numbers of fat globules in blood vessels in the lungs, liver, and kidneys. Fat embolism during total hip arthroplasty is a common surgical complication in humans, but it is uncommon in veterinary cases and is rarely a cause of death.
Find similar cases for your pet
PetCaseFinder finds other peer-reviewed reports of pets with the same symptoms, plus a plain-English summary of what was tried across them.
Search related cases →Original publication on PubMed: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/15238566/