Journal watch22 October 2018
Author(s): S.A. Robertson, S.M. Gogolski, P. Pascoe, H.L. Shafford, J. Sager and G.M. Griffenhagen
Published in: Journal of Feline Medicine and Surgery
Date: July 2018
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1177/1098612X18781391
Type of access: Requires membership/payment
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Our summary
Robertson, S.A. et al. (2018) AAFP feline anesthesia guidelines. Journal of Feline Medicine and Surgery, 20 (7), pp. 602-634.
The aim of these guidelines from the American Association of Feline Practitioners (AAFP) is to make anaesthesia and sedation safer for feline patients; they are the first feline-specific anaesthesia guidelines.
The guidelines are based on a review of available literature and the consensus opinion of a panel of experts and cover the following areas:
- Anaesthesia equipment
- Anaesthesia circuits
- Pre-anaesthetic assessment
- Co-morbidities
- Critical patient emergencies
- Anaesthesia and sedation
- Airway management
- Peri-operative management
- Monitoring during anaesthesia
- Perioperative complications
- Anaesthesia recovery
Useful resources such as checklists, e.g. for pre-anaesthetic preparation, and algorithms, e.g. for troubleshooting bradycardia or tachycardia, are given throughout.
One limitation is that there is a slight American bias to the drugs listed.
Take home
Data shows that cats are at greater risk from anaesthetic complications compared to dogs. These guidelines will provide practitioners with a comprehensive resource on feline anaesthesia. The use of tables, diagrams and algorithms make the guidelines visually appealing and allow the information to be easily accessible thus providing a highly practical resource for veterinary teams. They will provide a good basis on which to produce local practice guidelines.
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