An outbreak of Akabane virus (AKAV) was observed in the Tohoku area, including Miyagi prefecture, in 2010. Sixty anomaly calves infected with AKAV were provided for pathological examination and for detection of the viral gene from their central nervous systems. Non-suppurative encephalomyelitis and spinal curvature were observed in 14 of 15 calves between September and October 2010. Serious muscular atrophy was found in 22 calves between November and December 2010. Hydranencephaly was observed in 10 of 12 calves between February and April 2011. A slight presence of AKAV antigens was detected in a glial cell in the cervical spinal cord of a calf born in September 2010. The AKAV gene was detected in the midbrain, the medulla oblongata, and in several parts of the spinal cords of calves born in or before December 2010, but was not detected in calves born from February 2011. AKAV was not isolated from calves born in any period. The present study showed that RThnested PCR analysis of the midbrain, medulla oblongata, and spinal cord could detect the viral gene for long periods, and is imperative in diagnosing the disease.

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Peri-operative analgesia using constant rate infusion (CRI) of remifentanil combined with a low dose fentanyl CRI was evaluated in surgical cases of dogs. One hundred and ten dogs were premedicated with midazolam,meloxicam, and atropine. Anesthesia was induced with propofol and maintained with sevoflurane inhalation anesthesia in all dogs. During surgery, the dogs had been administered remifentanil (36μg/kg/hr, CRI) alone (group R-R, n=55) or combined with fentanyl (2μg/kg/hr, CRI) (group RF-F, n=55). The dogs had received remifentanil (4μg/kg/hr, CRI) or fentanyl (2μg/kg/hr, CRI) for 24 hours after the surgery in groups R-R and RF-F, respectively. The end-tidal concentrations of sevoflurane required for maintaining surgical anesthesia ranged from 1.32 to 1.48% in group RR and from 1.43 to 1.57% in group RF-F. During the anesthesia, all dogs were controlled by artificial ventilation. A smaller number of dogs required treatment for hypotension in group RF-F (13% versus 38% in group R-R, P=0.010). Recovery from anesthesia was prompt in all dogs. Postoperative pain was significantly reduced in group RF-F compared with group R-R (P=0.041). In conclusion, it is suggested that peri-operative analgesia using a combination of remifentanil and low dose fentanyl CRIs preserves cardiovascular function during anesthesia and provides better quality of postoperative analgesia.

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Thromboembolism commonly occurs in cats with heart disorders, but is rare in the dogs. We describe a dog with suspected thromboembolism, with the thrombus in the peripheral artery and left ventricle. A border collie suddenly presented with astasia on hind legs, and a peripheral arterial thrombus embolism was suspected. We started anticoagulant therapy with the administration of heparin, but a mass (20.6 ×18.5 mm) that was projected inside the apex of the left ventricle was found in echocardiography. The prescription was changed to dalteparin sodium, ozagrel hydrochloride, and cephalexin. Seven days after changing the treatment, the mass was reduced to 13.1× 4.9 mm. We suggest that replacing thrombolysis with antithrombotic therapy suppressed the thrombus formation.

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The artificial dermis is a primary wound dressing and consists of an atercollagen sponge with low antigenicity and silicone membrane. This material is widely used in human medical treatments with the goal of creating an adequate granulate tissue for skin grafts. However, reports of clinical application with dogs are very few. In the present study, an artificial dermis (Pelnac®) was applied to four dogs with wide skin defects in the distal limb or tail. As a result, fresh and smooth granulate tissue was obtained at the beginning of the artificial dermis application in three of the four cases. In addition, the secondary skin graft was engrafted well at most of the granuate tissue induced by artificial dermis. These results showed that artificial dermis supports the induction of adequate granulate tissue despite differences in skin structure between humans and dogs, and could expand the scope of application of skin grafts even at sites with limited subcutaneous soft tissue.

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Polymerase chain reaction (PCR) was used to detect canine coronavirus (CCoV) and type 2 canine parvovirus (CPV-2) infections in 149 clinical samples from diarrheic puppies under 12 weeks of age, collected in Japan between 2007 and 2010. The results revealed that 46.3% and 38.3% of samples were positive for CCoV and CPV-2, respectively. The prevalence of CCoV I among CCoV variants appears to be increasing annually, however, that of CCoV IIa remains unchanged and is most prevalent (75.4%). CPV-2b was most prevalent among CPV-2 variants (93.0%) and CPV-2c was undetected. Concurrent infection with CCoV and CPV-2 was detected in 12.1% of samples. The peak incidence of CCoV and CPV-2 infection was at 7 weeks of age.

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To investigate the presence of bacterial translocation (BT) in cattle, twelve culled cows were examined bacteriologically, pathologically, and immunohistochemically. Enteric bacteria were isolated from 91.7% of mesenteric lymph nodes (MLN), 100% of livers, and 66.7% of spleens examined. Isolated gram-negative bacteria were identified as Escherichia coli in 16.7% of MLN and 8.3% of livers examined, and as Klebsiella pneumoniae and Pseudomonas aeruginosa in 8.3% of livers. The isolated gram-positive bacteria from these organs were identified as the genera Bacillus, Enterococcus, or Streptococcus and Staphylococcus. S.aureus was also isolated from 8.3% of MLN, 25% of livers and 8.3% of spleens. Using anti-E.coli polyclonal and anti-S.aureus antibodies, we were able to detect antigens in the organs where these bacteria were isolated. Pathologically, we observed large accumulations of neutrophils in the marginal zone of the spleens, as well as large depositions of ceroid granules in the MLN and spleens. These results confirmed the presence of BT and a wasting state in culled animals with macroscopic abnormalities in their livers.

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