Infrared Thermography following Castration, Otectomy and Gastrotomy in ‎Nigerian Indigenous Dogs

Abstract

Infrared thermography analyzes changes in the surface temperature of the skin and has been used in companion animals to identify inflammatory processes, neoplasia, pain, and neuropathies. This study evaluated and compared surgical wound surface temperatures in Nigerian Indigenous Dogs (NID). Nigerian indigenous dogs are a medium-sized breed that weighs between 8 to 30 kg with moderate hair length, and a mesocephalic cranial index. The dogs were randomly allocated into groups A, B, and C for castration, otectomy, and gastrotomy, respectively. The wound surface temperature (WST) in the NID that underwent gastrotomy were significantly higher particularly at 18-48 h compared with Pre and other sampling periods within the group. It was also found that, at 0 h versus 48 h, 18 h versus 48 h, week 1 versus 18h; 24h; 48h; and 72h showed significant (p < 0.05) differences among NID subjected to gastrotomy (group C). However, the WST of NID subjected to castration and otectomy were significantly higher than that of gastrotomy. At 48 and 72 h, and week 1, the WST of NID in otectomy also known as ear cropping (group B) and castration (group A) were significantly (p < 0.05) higher than that of gastrotomy (Group C). Thermography of the surgical wounds aided postoperative wound management in the NID that underwent castration, otectomy and gastrotomy. Hence, the study suggests that guided WST with the aid of infrared thermography could be deployed as a useful tool to aid post operative wound management.

Assessment of Pain and Inflammation in Domestic Animals Using Infrared Thermography: A Narrative Review

“…Aside from castration, other invasive procedures, such as otectomy and gastrotomy, have been evaluated using the superficial temperature of the surgical wound. Saidu et al [ 107 ] evaluated the temperature of surgical wounds in indigenous dogs subjected to castration, otectomy, and gastrotomy, registering increases within the first 12 h post-surgery (+2.34 °C, +0.58 °C, and +0.56 °C, respectively), and, at 48 h, the temperature in the first two groups was higher than those undergoing gastrotomy. Accordingly, the authors concluded that increased values could be associated with pain and inflammatory responses, an effect that was not observed in gastrotomy.…”

Thermal Imaging as a Method to Indirectly Assess Peripheral Vascular Integrity and Tissue Viability in Veterinary Medicine: Animal Models and Clinical Applications

“…The results showed that graft adherence and healing were obtained when neovascularization caused a similar temperature between the graft site and surrounding healthy tissue [ 84 ]. Similarly, in Nigerian indigenous dogs, IRT was used in animals undergoing castration, otectomy, and gastrotomy [ 87 ]. The authors evaluated wound surface temperature and found that the initial temperature of castrated dogs was 33.34 ± 0.86 °C, a temperature that increased to 35.64 ± 0.57 °C at 6 h postsurgery, 35.14 ± 0.38 at 24 h, 35.82 ± 0.61 °C at 48 h, 35.24 ± 0.64 at 1 week, and progressively decreased in the second week postsurgery (32.84 ± 1.27 °C).…”

“…These studies, apart from showing that IRT can help to determine a sustained inflammatory response associated with healing delay, show that it is a tool that can help to refine current procedures not only because they are painful but because tissue damage might be greater with a greater inflammatory response. For example, analgesic options such as lidocaine in surgical incisions were evaluated through IRT to assess if the local anesthetic has a negative effect on wound healing, as studied in cats and dogs by Herlofson et al [ 87 ]. Surface temperatures between lidocaine alone or NaCl did not differ ( p = 0.554) with healing scores of 3 and 2.5, respectively, showing that lidocaine addition does not influence wound healing.…”