Downloaded from veterinaryrecord.bmj.com on July 15, 2014 - Published by group.bmj.com

Letters References

KING, A. (2011) Enzootic abortion: sheep abortion testing service. Veterinary Record 168, 85 LAROUCAU, K., VORIMORE, F., SACHSE, K., VRETOU, E., SIARKOU, V. I., WILLEMS, H. & OTHERS (2010) Differential identification of Chlamydophila abortus live vaccine strain 1B and C abortus field isolates by PCR-RFLP. Vaccine 28, 56535656 WHEELHOUSE, N., AITCHISON, K., LAROUCAU, K., THOMSON, J. & LONGBOTTOM, D. (2010) Evidence of Chlamydophila abortus vaccine strain 1B as a possible cause of ovine enzootic abortion. Vaccine 28, 5657-5663

doi: 10.1136/vr.g3833

NOTIFIABLE DISEASES

Testing for exclusion of notifiable diseases I READ the letter from the CVO, Nigel Gibbens, and others (VR, May 24, 2014, vol 174, pp 534-535) on testing for exclusion of notifiable avian disease with great pleasure, even though the arrangement only applies to poultry at this stage. A group from the equine sector was discussing this very same arrangement relating to a range of equine respiratory conditions with Defra some years ago and made only limited impact. Clearly, the poultry sector has been more persuasive in addressing the problem and finding a solution. I hope that this pilot in poultry is successful and that a similar arrangement can, thereafter, be put in place for screening equids for specific respiratory conditions without the need for the imposition of statutory movement restrictions. Keith Meldrum, The Orchard, Swaynes Lane, Guildford, Surrey GU1 2XX e-mail: [email protected] doi: 10.1136/vr.g3834

ANALGESIA

Complication following a brachial plexus block I AM writing to report a complication following administration of a brachial plexus block in a dobermann, so that colleagues are aware of the potential for complication and to ask whether others have experienced the same. The patient was a seven-year-old, female, spayed dobermann, admitted for a left pancarpal arthrodesis (PCA). Apart from bilateral carpal varus for which it was being treated, the patient was otherwise fit 614 | Veterinary Record | June 14, 2014

and well, and a previous buccal bleeding time was within a normal range. Under general anaesthesia, the patient was aseptically prepared for surgery including a brachial plexus block, which was administered routinely using a 3.5 inch, 20 gauge spinal needle as described by Grint (2013). Seven ml of bupivacaine 0.5 per cent was to be injected but, after injecting 5 ml after initial placement and withdrawing the needle 1 cm from its initial position, streaks of blood were aspirated, so the last 2 ml were not injected. A nerve stimulator was not used to identify the site for injection. Surgery was uneventful and positioning for surgery was in dorsal recumbency with the leg extended. The brachial plexus block appeared functional for complete analgesia to the carpus and, eight hours following administration, once the dog was fully recovered from anaesthesia, the block was still providing complete motor block to the left fore. The following day (20 hours after administration) there was localised motor and sensory block to the left fore. The dog was unable to fix its elbow and the cutaneous trunci reflex was absent on the left side. It was able to feel deep pain sensation to all of its digits but had diminished cutaneous sensation to the medial digit and dorsum of the paw. It had motor function to its elbow flexors; the extensor carpi radialis reflex could not be tested owing to the previous PCA. Detailed examination of the axilla revealed no significant bruising or pain but there was a small degree of serous discharge from a puncture consistent with the brachial plexus block needle site. Over the next six hours full motor and sensory function returned to the left fore and the dog was discharged 36 hours later. There is a paucity of reported complications following brachial plexus block in dogs although direct trauma to neurovascular structures is clearly a risk. In this case there was a complete and spontaneous recovery from what appeared to be a prolonged effect of the bupivacaine on the caudal plexus. If the cause had been trauma then I speculate that the recovery would not have been within the time scales seen and, although the effect of bupivacaine has been reported to be up to 11 hours with the addition of adrenaline (Futema and others 2002), its normal duration of activity is five to eight hours (Macedo and other 2010). I would be interested to hear from colleagues as to whether this has been experienced by others in order to get a better idea of its incidence. I report the case to highlight the importance of informed consent for any procedure, although in the light of the spontaneous recovery I would suggest a ‘tincture of time’ in future cases that appear to have a prolonged blockade, provided deep pain sensation is still present.

I would like to thank Nicki Grint from Cave Vet Specialists and Sebastien Behr from Willows Referral Service for their advice sought at the time.

References

FUTEMA, F., FANTONI, D. T., AULER, J. O. C., CORTOPASSI, S. R. G., ACAURI, A. & STOPIGLIA, A. J. (2002) A new brachial plexus block technique in dogs. Veterinary Anaesthesia and Analgesia 29, 133-139 GRINT, N. (2013) How to place local anaesthetic blocks in small animals. In Collected Articles from BSAVA Companion. Ed M. Goodfellow. BSAVA. pp 37-49 MACEDO, G. G., DEROSSI, R. & FRAZÍLIO, F. O. (2010) Evaluation of two regional anesthetic methods on the front limbs of dogs using hyperbaric bupivacaine. Acta Cirurgica Brasileira 25, 298-303

Patrick Ridge, Ridge Referrals, Jubilee Barn, Dawlish Water, Dawlish, Devon EX7 0QW e-mail: [email protected] doi: 10.1136/vr.g3850

WELFARE AT SLAUGHTER

Non-stun slaughter IN response to Simon Hayes’s statement in his recent letter that ‘Shechita is not non-stun slaughter as the cut causes both a stun and kill in a single procedure’ (VR, May 31, 2014, vol 174, pp 561-562) I have had the misfortune to have witnessed the Shechita slaughter of cattle in a modern abattoir in the 21st century and so I can only assume that Mr Hayes has a different definition of ‘stun’ and ‘kill’ from mine. These terrified animals started to bellow as they were turned on their backs and were still bellowing and clearly still conscious when hung, by one leg, to bleed out. I have witnessed conventional slaughter in other abattoirs and on farm, and have never seen the same reaction. This image of suffering has haunted me ever since. Margaret Boyde, 41 Camelot Close, Southwater, Horsham,West Sussex RH13 9XP e-mail: [email protected] doi: 10.1136/vr.g3851

Downloaded from veterinaryrecord.bmj.com on July 15, 2014 - Published by group.bmj.com

Complication following a brachial plexus block: Analgesia Patrick Ridge Veterinary Record 2014 174: 614

doi: 10.1136/vr.g3850

Updated information and services can be found at: http://veterinaryrecord.bmj.com/content/174/24/614.2.full.html

These include:

References

This article cites 2 articles http://veterinaryrecord.bmj.com/content/174/24/614.2.full.html#ref-list-1

Email alerting service

Receive free email alerts when new articles cite this article. Sign up in the box at the top right corner of the online article.

Notes

To request permissions go to: http://group.bmj.com/group/rights-licensing/permissions

To order reprints go to: http://journals.bmj.com/cgi/reprintform

To subscribe to BMJ go to: http://group.bmj.com/subscribe/

Complication following a brachial plexus block.

Complication following a brachial plexus block. - PDF Download Free
59KB Sizes 3 Downloads 5 Views