Peer-reviewed veterinary case report
Laser therapy effects on incision healing in 9 dogs
By Wardlaw, Jennifer L et al.·Published in Frontiers in veterinary science·2018·Department of Clinical Sciences, 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 We do not publish original research — every detail traces back to the citation above.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: Laser Therapy for Incision Healing in 9 Dogs.
- Species:
- dog
Plain-English summary
Nine Dachshunds recovering from back surgery for intervertebral disc disease (IVDD) received daily laser therapy to help their surgical wounds heal better. After seven days of treatment, the dogs that had laser therapy showed significantly better healing and a more cosmetic appearance of their incisions compared to those that did not receive the therapy. By day 21, the benefits of the laser treatment were still noticeable. This suggests that laser therapy can be an effective option for improving wound healing in dogs after surgery.
People also search for: Dachshund surgery recovery · laser therapy for dog wounds · intervertebral disc disease treatment in dogs
Abstract
Laser therapy is becoming common place in veterinary medicine with little evidence proving efficacy or dosages. This study evaluated surgical wound healing in canines. Twelve Dachshunds underwent thoraco-lumbar hemilaminectomies for intervertebral disc disease (IVDD). Digital photographs were taken of their incisions within 24 h of surgery and 1, 3, 5, 7, and 21 days postoperatively. The first three dogs were used to create a standardized scar scale to score the other dogs' incision healing. The remaining 9 dogs were randomly assigned to either receive 8 J/cmlaser therapy once a day for 7 days or the non-laser treated control group. Incision healing was scored based on the scar scale from 0 to 5, with zero being a fresh incision and five being completely healed with scar contraction and hair growth. All scar scores significantly improved with increasing time from surgery (<0.001). Good agreement was achieved for inter-rater reliability (= 0.9). Laser therapy increased the scar scale score, showed improved cosmetic healing, by day seven and continued to be significantly increased on day 21 compared to control dogs (< 0.001). Daily application of laser therapy at 8J/cm2 hastened wound healing in Dachshunds that received thoracolumbar hemilaminectomies for IVDD. It also improved the cosmetic appearance.
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/30761311/