Dehiscence rate and associated risk factors after gastrotomy for removal of foreign material in dogs and cats

OBJECTIVE: Identify rate and associated risk factors for dehiscence following gastrotomy for foreign material removal. METHODS: Medical records from 2 private practice emergency and referral hospitals were reviewed, and history, laboratory values, intraoperative findings, and outcomes were collected on 271 dogs and 31 cats (n = 302). RESULTS: Hospital A performed 222 procedures and Hospital B performed 80 procedures. Three cats (3 of 31 [10%]) and 20 dogs (20 of 271 [7%]) had intraoperative intestinal perforations. Two cats (2 of 31 [6.5%]) and 7 dogs (7 of 271 [2.6%]) were diagnosed with preoperative septic peritonitis. Concurrent surgical procedures in felines included enterotomy (3 of 31 [10%]), multiple enterotomies (3 of 31 [10%]), intestinal resection and anastomosis (IR&A; 2 of 31 [6%]), and other (1 of 31 [3%]). Concurrent surgical procedures in canines included enterotomy (55 of 271 [20%]), multiple enterotomies (11 of 271 [4%]), IR&A (24 of 271 [9%]), IR&A and enterotomy (1 of 271 [0.4%]), splenectomy (11 of 271 [4%]), and other (50 of 271 [18%]). There was no proven gastrotomy dehiscence. Two patients that did not have follow-up surgery or necropsy before euthanasia developed postoperative septic peritonitis, and gastrotomy dehiscence could not be ruled out as a differential diagnosis. Assuming neither patient, 1 patient, or both patients had gastrotomy dehiscence, the gastrotomy dehiscence rate was 0% to 0.66%. However, these patients also had an IR&A. CONCLUSIONS: Two cases were presumed to have gastrotomy dehiscence, as the authors would rather overestimate the dehiscence rate. However, it is more likely that the IR&A was the dehiscence site rather than the gastrotomy. CLINICAL RELEVANCE: Gastrotomy dehiscence rate is low in cats and dogs, and the dehiscence rate reported in this study may be an overestimation.