Determinación de la relación existente entre las complicaciones postoperatorias más comunes que se presentan en perras y el manejo peri y post operatorio en campañas masivas de esterilización de la Universidad de Cuenca

Abstract

Irresponsible ownership has contributed to the increase of canine and feline overpopulation in urban and rural parishes, becoming a public health problem and a danger to ecosystems; for this reason, sterilization campaigns have been implemented around the world, since the surgical procedure of ovariohysterectomy is one of the most widely used birth control strategies in domestic animals; however, since it is performed on a massive scale, the reality of the patient after surgery is not known. The objective of this research was to analyze the possible relationships between the postoperative complications encountered and the peri and postoperative management of bitches subjected to ovariohysterectomy in sterilization campaigns developed by the University of Cuenca. The study was carried out in 2 campaigns, and the follow-up was done in 2 stages (through home visits and by telephone), until postoperative day 10. 115 female canine patients were randomly selected, as 58 patients in the first campaign and 57 patients in the second. Defined registries were used to track the most common postoperative complications, such as wound dehiscence and infection, postoperative bleeding, and gastrointestinal disorders. For the statistical analysis, cross tables were used, Chi square tests with Fisher adjustment and Odds Ratio were applied to establish relationships between postoperative complications and peri and postoperative variables, thus observing that 28.7% of the patients presented at least one postoperative complication, the most relevant being wound infections. Only two significant relationships were found (p<0.05), concluding that, to reduce the probability that the patient suffers from dehiscence and wound infections, the use of the elizabethan collar is necessary; in the same way, to minimize the risk of postoperative bleeding, intraoperative bleeding should be avoided.