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Tolerability and efficacy of zoledronate in the palliative treatment of canine cancer

USER-ALT Mariana Lopes and others , University of Glasgow , UK

Zoledronate is a bisphosphonate drug that inhibits osteoclastic activity and is used in treating various conditions involving bone breakdown in human patients . The authors conducted a retrospective assessment of the use of this drug in the palliative care of dogs with bone malignancies . Data were available for 37 dogs with tumour-associated bone pain and 15 dogs with malignant hypercalcaemia . Zoledronate was effective in reducing levels of available ionised calcium . Adverse events occurred after 21 % of infusions and could be attributed to the concurrent chemotherapy treatment or the underlying neoplastic disease . The drug seems to be well tolerated in canine cancer patients but the authors recommend monitoring of serum creatinine levels following treatment .

Australian Veterinary Journal https :// doi . org / 10.1111 / avj . 13218

Comparison of four cleaning protocols for endotracheal tubes used in anaesthetised dogs

USER-ALT Charlotte Marquis and others , University of Missouri , Columbia , USA

Polyvinyl chloride endotracheal tubes were first introduced for anaesthesia in the 1960s . Reuse of these tubes has been discouraged in human medicine for many years , but in veterinary hospitals they may be used multiple times for economic reasons . The authors questioned veterinary anaesthesiologists online about their practices , and conducted bacterial culture tests on used tubes that had been cleaned using four different methods . Their findings showed that half of the respondents who reused the tubes did not sterilise them properly before reuse , and the cleaning methods employed varied widely . At least 60 % of the tubes still produced significant bacterial growth when cultured following cleaning , whichever protocol was used .

Journal of the American Veterinary Association https :// doi . org / 10.2460 / javma . 22.10.0446

Longevity and causes of mortality in pet rabbits in Japan

USER-ALT Takanora Shiga and others , Vision Vets Group , Tokyo , Japan

With ongoing improvements in the veterinary care available for pet rabbits , the age at death of these pets is likely to increase . Currently , there is little published information on the longevity of pet rabbits . The authors examined data on 898 rabbits , owned by clients of a Japanese exotic pet practice , that died between 2006 and 2020 . The median age at death of this population was 7 years and 18 % of the group lived for more than 9 years . Gastrointestinal disease was the main cause of death in younger rabbits ( less than 4 years old ), while neoplasia was the main cause in middle-aged and older rabbits .

Journal of Exotic Pet Medicine https :// doi . org / 10.1053 / j . jepm . 2022.09.003

14 Veterinary Nursing Journal