Acute
Metritis
Acute
Metritis: An infection of the uterus.
What is metritis?
Metritis
is a serious bacterial infection of the uterus. It usually occurs within a week
of whelping or queening, but occasionally occurs after insemination or breeding.
The infection can spread to the bloodstream and cause sepsis (whole body infection).
What causes
metritis? Bacteria
invades the uterus, most commonly right after birth when the uterus is most susceptible.
The germs usually originate in the vagina. This is more likely to happen if there
has been a dystocia (difficult birth), or retained fetuses or placentas. What
are signs of metritis? A
cardinal sign of metritis is an abnormal discharge from the vulva, a pus and/or
green or brown colored fluid with an unpleasant odor. Depression, loss of appetite,
fever, poor mothering, and decreased milk production are also common. How
is metritis diagnosed? Your
veterinarian may suspect metritis after examining your bitch or queen and obtaining
the history, but will probably want to run several tests to confirm the diagnosis
and check for any underlying cause. A blood count is performed to look for response
to infection. Vagina cell(cytologic) examination under the microscope will allow
a check for germs and pus in the reproductive tract. When infection is found,
cultures are performed to identify the organism and identify the best choice of
antibiotic. An abdominal radiograph (X-ray) is performed to check for a retained
fetus. Ultrasonography is often performed to
look for retained fetus or placenta, and will visualize any retained fluid within
the uterus. How
is metritis treated? Treatment
will depend upon your pet's condition. Severely ill patients may need hospitalization
for intravenous fluids and antibiotics. Patients with a damaged uterus may require
an ovariohysterectomy (spay). For more stable patients, antibiotics are given,
and injections of prostaglandins (they help empty out the infected uterus) are
administered. What
is the prognosis for animals with metritis? The
prognosis for metritis patients that are spayed is very good. The prognosis for
patients with uncomplicated metritis (no retained fetus or placenta) that are
treated medically is fair, but the ability to produce future litters may be decreased.
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