Surgical Management of a Chronic Neck Abscess in a U.S. Navy Bottlenose Dolphin

Military Medicine
Clara LeeGordon Wisbach

Abstract

Surgical intervention on cetaceans is rarely performed due to challenges including general anesthesia and post-operative wound healing. This report describes the evaluation and treatment of an adult female bottlenose dolphin (Tursiops truncatus) with the US Navy Marine Mammal Program, with a chronic ventral cervical abscess caused by Candida glabrata. Despite aspiration and lavage along with multiple antifungal drugs, the patient developed inspiratory stridor with decreased performance level and surgical treatment was pursued. Under general anesthesia with the dolphin in dorsal recumbency position a 12-cm longitudinal ventral midline neck incision was used for exploration. Intraoperative ultrasound aided the identification of surgical landmarks and the abscess cavity. After adequate drainage and curettage, a closed-suction drain was placed in the surgical site. Retention sutures were used to close the incision and the external drain bulb was secured to a pectoral fin strap. One-year post-op, the dolphin was clinically normal and follow-up imaging showed no significant recurrence of the abscess. This case demonstrates a novel surgical approach of managing abscesses in dolphins, including placement and management of a negative su...Continue Reading

References

Mar 1, 1969·Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America·J G McCormick
Nov 15, 2012·Veterinary Pathology·L BegemanR I Keesler
Jan 24, 2014·Journal of Zoo and Wildlife Medicine : Official Publication of the American Association of Zoo Veterinarians·Jennifer L Higgins, Dean A Hendrickson
Jul 28, 2017·Journal of Zoo and Wildlife Medicine : Official Publication of the American Association of Zoo Veterinarians·Justin F RosenbergStephen A Raverty

❮ Previous
Next ❯

Citations

Jan 10, 2020·Veterinary Surgery : VS·Nicholas G Dannemiller, Dean A Hendrickson

❮ Previous
Next ❯

Related Concepts

Related Feeds

Antifungals (ASM)

An antifungal, also known as an antimycotic medication, is a pharmaceutical fungicide or fungistatic used to treat and prevent mycosis such as athlete's foot, ringworm, candidiasis, cryptococcal meningitis, and others. Discover the latest research on antifungals here.

Antifungals

An antifungal, also known as an antimycotic medication, is a pharmaceutical fungicide or fungistatic used to treat and prevent mycosis such as athlete's foot, ringworm, candidiasis, cryptococcal meningitis, and others. Discover the latest research on antifungals here.

Related Papers

Revue des corps de santé des armées: terre, mer, air, et du corps vétérinaire
Bourcart
The American Journal of Physiology
W MEDWAY, J R GERACI
© 2022 Meta ULC. All rights reserved