Peer-reviewed veterinary case report
Surgery outcomes for cats with linear or discrete gut foreign bodies
By Gollnick, Hailey R et al.·Published in Journal of feline medicine and surgery·2023·Department of Small Animal Medicine and Surgery, United States·View original on PubMed →
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Original publication title: Retrospective evaluation of surgical treatment of linear and discrete gastrointestinal foreign bodies in cats: 2009-2021.
- Species:
- cat
Plain-English summary
A group of 56 cats that had surgery to remove foreign objects from their stomachs were studied to see how they fared after the procedure. The cats either had linear foreign bodies (like string) or discrete foreign bodies (like a ball). Fortunately, none of the cats developed serious infections or died after surgery, and all of them survived. However, those with linear foreign bodies had longer surgeries and were more likely to need antibiotics afterward. Overall, the surgery for these foreign bodies was successful with minimal complications.
People also search for: cat stomach foreign body surgery · cat string ingestion symptoms · cat recovery after surgery for foreign body
Abstract
OBJECTIVES: Gastrointestinal foreign bodies (FBs) are an important cause of emergency surgical intervention in cats, but little information exists in the literature evaluating the risks and outcomes in this species. The study purpose was to describe cases of feline FBs and compare perioperative factors and outcomes between linear foreign body (LFB) and discrete foreign body (DFB) surgery in cats. METHODS: The medical records from the University of Georgia Veterinary Teaching Hospital were searched for cats that had undergone surgery for FB removal between August 2009 and August 2021. Perioperative data were collected and described. Data were compared between cats with an LFB and cats with a DFB. A binomial probability series was used to estimate the likelihood of postoperative septic peritonitis or mortality in an additional cat in the series. RESULTS: A total of 56 cats were included in this study; 38 cats had a DFB and 18 had an LFB. No cats developed postoperative septic peritonitis, and all cats survived. The likelihood of postoperative septic peritonitis or mortality in an additional cat was estimated to be <5.2%. Cats with an LFB were found to have a significantly higher body condition score ( = 0.047), albumin ( = 0.025), American Society of Anesthesiologists status ( = 0.027), surgery length (<0.001) and total cost of visit ( = 0.006) when compared with cats with a DFB. Cats with LFBs were more likely to develop a surgical site infection (SSI; = 0.007) and be administered postoperative antibiotics ( = 0.017). CONCLUSIONS AND RELEVANCE: Cats undergoing surgery for gastrointestinal FBs had a low incidence of postoperative complications. Cats with LFBs had longer surgeries and were more likely to develop postoperative SSIs.
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Search related cases →Original publication on PubMed: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/37350262/