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Background: Probiotics are widely used in dogs but can be associated with alterations in some serum biochemistry test results., Objective: To assess the effect of Enterococcus faecium SF68 administration for 14 days on serum alanine transferase (ALT) and alkaline phosphatase (ALP) activity and total cholesterol and triglyceride concentrations in healthy dogs., Animals: Thirty-six healthy privately owned neutered dogs were randomly allocated, stratified by sex, to control or probiotic groups. Dogs were clinically healthy, with normal physical examination findings, blood, urine, and fecal analyses and ultrasonographic examinations., Method: In this blinded, controlled study E. faecium SF68 was administered to the probiotic group for 14 days. Blood samples were taken from all dogs at days 0, 14, and 28. Serum ALT and ALP activity and total cholesterol and triglyceride concentrations were determined on these 3 days., Results: The probiotic induced no significant changes in mean ALT and ALP activity. Mean cholesterol concentration did not change during probiotic administration but a significant decrease was seen on day 28 (P < .01). Mean triglyceride concentration increased progressively, becoming significant at day 28 (P < .05), with 1 dog developing hypertriglyceridemia., Conclusions and Clinical Importance: E. faecium SF68 would not create confusion when monitoring dogs with hepatobiliary disease because ALT and ALP activity did not change significantly. A significant decrease in cholesterol and significant increase in triglyceride concentrations were seen at day 28 but were not clinically relevant, with 1 dog showing hypertriglyceridemia. A longer trial is warranted to assess if the probiotic effects could be clinically relevant and to assess its potential use in hypertriglyceridemic dogs., (© 2019 The Authors. Journal of Veterinary Internal Medicine published by Wiley Periodicals, Inc. on behalf of the American College of Veterinary Internal Medicine.)

Objective: To compare the adrenocortical response of healthy dogs to a commonly used dose of a nonadsorbed tetracosactide product (tetracosactide) with responses to 2 doses of a depot formulation of tetracosactide (depot tetracosactide)., Animals: 14 dogs., Procedures: Dogs were randomly assigned to receive tetracosactide (5 mg/kg, IV) or depot tetracosactide (250 μg, IM, or 5 μg/kg, IM). Dogs received each treatment once with a 2-week interval between treatments. Blood samples were assayed for cortisol, progesterone, 17-hydroxyprogesterone, androstenedione, and estradiol concentrations., Results: Serum cortisol concentrations were significantly higher than the preadministration (baseline) concentrations for all treatments 60 minutes after administration of ACTH. Peak cortisol concentration was detected 180 minutes after IM administration of 250 μg of the depot tetracosactide. Serum concentrations of progesterone, 17-hydroxyprogesterone, and androstenedione did not differ significantly from baseline concentrations after stimulation with the 5 μg/kg dose of depot tetracosactide. Adrenal gland progesterone response was significantly higher than baseline concentrations at 60 minutes after administration of the 250-μg dose of depot tetracosactide, and the 17-hydroxyprogesterone and androstenedione responses were significantly higher than baseline concentrations at 120 minutes. Compared with the response to tetracosactide, adrenocortical response was higher and more sustained following administration of the depot tetracosactide, except for androstenedione concentration, which had a nonsignificant response., Conclusions and Clinical Relevance: Except for androstenedione concentrations, a high dose of the depot tetracosactide (250 μg, IM) induced an adrenocortical response similar to that after administration of tetracosactide. Thus, depot tetracosactide may represent an alternative to the nonadsorbed tetracosactide product.

Simple Summary: The temporomandibular joint (TMJ) of dogs is a bilateral joint mainly used for chewing, and subsequently, an area where pathologies are frequently seen. Computed tomography (CT) represents a very important imaging modality used to diagnose TMJ diseases in dogs. A three-dimensional representation of CT images created by a volume rendering method (3DVR) could improve our understanding of the alterations in this joint. In this study, we assessed 3DVR as an ancillary method for the description and diagnosis of TMJ pathologies in dogs. Based on computed tomography (CT) images, volume rendering was used to obtain a three-dimensional representation of data (3DVR). The aims of this study included: describing the bone anatomy of the temporomandibular joint (TMJ) of dogs; comparing the TMJs of each dog by skull type and age; comparing 3DVR images with three-standard-plane CTs; assessing soft tissues adjacent to the TMJ and assessing pathological cases. Multidetector computed tomography scans of bilateral TMJs of 410 dogs were observed. From a ventral view, slight displacements in the positions of the skulls were seen, whereas from a caudal view, differences in amplitude of the articular space were observed. Dolichocephalic and mesaticephalic dogs showed more similar TMJ features than brachycephalic dogs. The shape of the TMJ bones were irregular in dogs under 1 year old. The 3DVR images related to the three-standard-plane CT improved the overall comprehension of the changes in the articular space amplitude and condylar process morphology. The fovea pterygoidea, mandibular fossa and retroarticular process were perfectly shown. A better spatial situation of adjacent soft tissues was obtained. The 3DVR represents an ancillary method to the standard-plane CT that could help in the understanding of the anatomy and diagnoses of different pathologies of the TMJ in dogs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]