title: Identification of risk factors for septic peritonitis and failure to survive following gastrointestinal surgery in dogs.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To identify risk factors for failure to survive and development of septic peritonitis following full-thickness gastrointestinal incision in dogs. Design-Retrospective cohort study.
  
  
  METHODS
  Dogs that underwent gastrointestinal surgery from 1998 through 2007 at the University of Georgia Veterinary Teaching Hospital. Procedures-Medical records of dogs undergoing a full-thickness gastrointestinal incision were reviewed, and information regarding dog history, clinicopathologic findings, surgery characteristics, and outcome was collected.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Records for 197 dogs (225 surgeries) were evaluated. In 35 (16%) surgeries, the dogs died prior to hospital discharge. After 28 (12%) surgeries, dogs developed septic peritonitis. For 45 (20%) surgeries, dogs had preoperative septic peritonitis; of those, approximately a third resulted in continued septic peritonitis (17/45; 38%) or death (15/45; 33%). Of the 180 surgeries performed in dogs lacking preoperative septic peritonitis, 11 (6%) resulted in development of septic peritonitis and 20 (11 %) resulted in death. When all surgeries were considered, common risk factors for development of septic peritonitis included preoperative septic peritonitis, low preoperative serum albumin and plasma protein concentrations, and intraoperative hypotension. Presence of a foreign body was a protective factor.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Multiple factors were associated with failure to survive and development of septic peritonitis after gastrointestinal surgery in dogs. Aggressive perioperative attempts to increase protein concentrations and intraoperative surgical strategies to decrease the chance of a poor outcome may be indicated in dogs with risk factors identified in this study.
authors.affiliation: Department of Small Animal Medicine and Surgery, College of Veterinary Medicine, University of Georgia, Athens, GA 30602, USA.
authors.forename: Janet A
authors.initials: JA
authors.lastname: Grimes
authors.forename: Chad W
authors.initials: CW
authors.lastname: Schmiedt
authors.forename: Karen K
authors.initials: KK
authors.lastname: Cornell
authors.forename: Mary Ann G
authors.initials: MA
authors.lastname: Radlinksy
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D013505:Digestive System Surgical Procedures / Q000009:adverse effects / Q000662:veterinary*; D004283:Dog Diseases / Q000209:etiology* / Q000401:mortality; D004285:Dogs; D010538:Peritonitis / Q000209:etiology / Q000401:mortality / Q000662:veterinary*; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D012307:Risk Factors; D018805:Sepsis / Q000209:etiology / Q000401:mortality / Q000662:veterinary*