July’s patient of the month could arguable be a story of
real magic. This 6year old, 19 pound, Miniature Poodle spent 17 days in our
hospital under the primary care of Dr. Carlos. This determined little guy
inspired our team of doctors and technicians that worked day and night with
emergency, critical and ultimately supportive care to ensure he returned home.
“Magic”, as he is so appropriately named, was referred by
his regular veterinarian to our hospital after 3 days inappetance, lethargy, no
bowel movements and a severe case of anemia of unknown origin.
Anemia is defined as a decreased number of red cells
(RBCs) in the blood, due to loss of, destruction of or lack of production of
the RBCs. Future diagnostics would tell
us that the cause of Magic’s anemia was a bleeding mass in his stomach. But the challenge here was that the mass was
not obvious on radiographs due to the presence of foreign material that Magic
had ingested. Therefore the first two days of hospitalization were dedicated to
stabilization and treatment of the anemia.
This treatment included fluids, immune suppressive medications and two
separate blood transfusions from our in-house blood bank. By the beginning of
his second day of treatment Magic was feeling better. Radiographs were repeated
and the source of all his problems became clear. When the foreign material had
passed through his stomach a sizable mass was clearly visible.
Surgery was performed by Dr. Carlos and Dr. Bibevski that
afternoon. In surgery they found the mass originating from the wall of the
stomach. The mass and a large portion of
the stomach were removed. While recovery
from surgery was uneventful however, he was not out of the woods yet.
In the days that followed surgery, Magic developed symptoms expected
from the removal of such a large portion of his stomach. These symptoms
included vomiting, inappetance and lethargy which would wax and wane throughout
his recovery. A Nasal Gastric tube was placed to help remove the buildup of
bile in his stomach and alleviate his chronic vomiting. Intravenous fluids were
administered to maintain hydration.
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| Warming up after a bath- getting ready to go home!! |
Once food was reintroduced to Magic’s diet he acquired a
severe case of pancreatitis.
Pancreatitis
is the inflammation and swelling of the
pancreas.
Pancreatitis can be caused by many things but is characterized by the abrupt
onset of
vomiting
and severe pain in the abdomen. It is confirmed by blood tests showing elevated
pancreatic enzymes- i.e.-
amylase and/or
lipase levels. Treatments involve gastric acid reducers, anti-emetics and
complete rest of the pancreas by administering nothing by mouth for several
days.
Magic started to show signs of improvement. He began to keep
small amount of food down and maintain his energy. Then, Magic again through us a curve ball. In
a matter of 24 hours Magic went from nearly going home to critical condition.
He was placed in our oxygen chamber and given a plasma transfusion to help his
body recover from all the changes occurring in his body. Each day, each hour even, Dr. Carlos evaluated
and adjusted Magic’s care.
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| Is my Dad here? |
The following week was full of ups and downs for our team
and for Magic’s family. However, no one gave up. His family visited and
discussed all options with Dr. Carlos. This was a trying time for everyone but
Magic was a fighter.
On his final day of hospitalization, Magic was able to eat
small amounts of food in a slurry and keep it down. His disposition was
brighter and he was sent home with strict instruction about his dietary care.
His prognosis was optimistic. Today, Magic is well. His entire family
participates in his care and he is on his way to returning to his normal diet.
Stories like this and families like this that make the job
we get to do every day a joy. Dr. Carlos and the HAH team used all their
resources to help Magic return to his life of rest, relaxation and love and we
are so pleased to have been a part of his medical team and recognize him as our
July Patient of the Month!
