Peer-reviewed veterinary case report
Blood sugar changes in dogs with severe dog bite wounds over 72 hours
By Schoeman, J P et al.·Published in Journal of the South African Veterinary Association·2011·Department of Companion Animal Clinical Studies·View original on PubMed →
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Original publication title: Serial plasma glucose changes in dogs suffering from severe dog bite wounds.
- Species:
- dog
Plain-English summary
A group of 20 dogs with severe bite wounds were monitored for changes in blood sugar levels over 72 hours. Initially, some dogs had low, normal, or high blood sugar, but most remained in the high range throughout the study. Puppies and thin dogs showed higher blood sugar levels compared to adults and heavier dogs. Out of the group, 15 dogs survived, and 13 made a full recovery after treatment, while those that were collapsed upon arrival had a much lower survival rate. Insulin treatment was considered but deemed risky due to the potential for low blood sugar.
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Abstract
The objective of this study was to describe the changes in plasma glucose concentration in 20 severely injured dogs suffering from dog bite wounds over a period of 72 hours from the initiation of trauma. Historical, signalment, clinical and haematological factors were investigated for their possible effect on plasma glucose concentration. Haematology was repeated every 24 hours and plasma glucose concentrations were measured at 8-hourly intervals post-trauma. On admission, 1 dog was hypoglycaemic, 8 were normoglycaemic and 11 were hyperglycaemic. No dogs showed hypoglycaemia at any other stage during the study period. The median blood glucose concentrations at each of the 10 collection points, excluding the 56-hour and 64-hour collection points, were in the hyperglycaemic range (5.8- 6.2 mmol/l). Puppies and thin dogs had significantly higher median plasma glucose concentrations than adult and fat dogs respectively (P < 0.05 for both). Fifteen dogs survived the 72-hour study period. Overall 13 dogs (81.3 %) made a full recovery after treatment. Three of 4 dogs that presented in a collapsed state died, whereas all dogs admitted as merely depressed or alert survived (P = 0.004). The high incidence of hyperglycaemia can possibly be explained by the "diabetes of injury" phenomenon. However, hyperglycaemia in this group of dogs was marginal and potential benefits of insulin therapy are unlikely to outweigh the risk of adverse effects such as hypoglycaemia.
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Search related cases →Original publication on PubMed: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/21826837/