Kidney Failure Due To Uterine Stump Pyometra In A Five Year Old Female Cross Breed Dog

Abstract

There has been an increased awareness and appreciation of the benefits of having a pet especially the dog. This has seen the veterinary practitioner in Kenya presented with more cases of elective ovariohysterectomy commonly known as spay. This is a permanent surgical contraceptive method for female dogs. However, this routine surgical procedure has also caused a concomitant increase in ovariohysterectomy complications. Uterine stump pyometra is one of these rare complications and is described as an infection of the uterine body tissue after an incomplete ovariohysterectomy procedure. Typically, there is also a portion of the ovarian tissue also present. Diagnosis of uterine stump pyometra is challenging as pyometra is often ruled out especially if the spay operation was carried out several years before presentation. The following case report highlights this challenge. A 5-year-old female cross-breed dog was presented to the University of Nairobi Small animal Clinic with a history of sudden onset of lethargy, anorexia and polydypsia. An ovariohysterectomy had been performed 3 years prior to the presentation. Clinical examination revealed the dog to be dehydrated with severe congestion of the sclera and conjunctiva blood vessels. Hematology and biochemistry analysis showed a leucocytosis with a left shift and elevated blood urea nitrogen and creatinine values. A left lateral abdominal radiograph revealed an enlarged left kidney and a soft tissue radio opaque mass ventral to the colon. This mass was thought to be an abscess. The tentative diagnosis was Kidney failure due to septicemia. Unfortunately the dog died as she was being stabilized for an exploratory laparatomy. Postmortem examination found both kidneys swollen with diffuse grayish foci of scar tissue on the cortices. There was also brown coloured fluid in a tubular structure that resembled remnant uterine horn tissue. The confirmatory diagnosis was nephritis due to chronic uterine stump infection.