Clinico-Pathological Evaluation of Critically Ailing Dogs with Special Reference to Thrombocytopenia

Background: Thrombocytopenia is the decrease in the number of platelets in blood. In dogs, thrombocytopenia occurs due to a multitude of aetiologies such as haemoprotozoal infections, bacterial infections, viral infections, non-infectious etiologies such as immune dysregulation, neoplasia and even due to miscellaneous conditions. Diagnosis of thrombocytopenia is done mostly by estimation of platelet count in automated haematology analysers and by evaluation of platelet count in blood smears. As clinical research focusing exclusively on canine thrombocytopenia is very limited in India, the present study was carried out to study the aetiology of canine thrombocytopenia and to obtain extensive information regarding qualitative and quantitative changes in platelets in various emergency conditions of dogs. Methods: 450 dogs were diagnosed with thrombocytopenia based on platelet count and a detailed investigation was carried out on the thrombocytopenic dogs to identify the aetiologic agents and to record the quantitative and qualitative changes in platelets. Result: Population incidence of thrombocytopenia in critically ill dog population was recorded as 34.09 per cent. Haemoparasitic infection, renal disorders, hyperthermia and sepsis were recorded as the major causes of thrombocytopenia. Haematobiochemical investigation revealed a significant reduction (p less than 0.01) of hemoglobin, RBC and PCV values and elevation in blood urea nitrogen (BUN), creatinine, alkaline phosphatase (ALP), total bilirubin, direct bilirubin and phosphorus. A mortality of 10.67% (48/450) was recorded in the thrombocytopenic dogs.