Short-Term Complications Associated with the Addition of Prophylactic Gastropexy Performed During Abdominal Exploratory for Emergency Gastrointestinal Surgery. Sherman AH1, Mickelson M2, Hawbecker T1, Yuan L1, Mochel J1. 1Iowa State University, Ames, IA; 2University of Missouri, Columbia, MO.
The objective of this study is to evaluate the effect of prophylactic gastropexy on short-term morbidity in dogs undergoing emergency exploratory laparotomy for gastrointestinal surgery. Given the low complication rates associated with gastropexy in general, it was hypothesized that the addition of prophylactic gastropexy would not significantly affect morbidity or mortality of dogs undergoing emergency laparotomy procedures for gastrointestinal surgery. A retrospective study was performed including 153 client-owned dogs that underwent exploratory laparotomy for enterotomy and/or gastrotomy with or without prophylactic right-sided incisional gastropexy at a single academic institution between July 2010 and 2020 after record review. Data was compared between gastropexy (69 dogs) and non-gastropexy groups (84 dogs). A right-sided incisional gastropexy in the pyloric antrum was performed in 68/69 dogs in the gastropexy group. The addition of a prophylactic right-sided incisional gastropexy during emergency laparotomy for underlying gastrointestinal causes did not increase minor or major postoperative complications, anesthetic or operative times, time to appetence, or time to hospital discharge. Complications occurred in 22% (19/84) of patients in the non-gastropexy group and 14% (10/69) of patients in the gastropexy group. The majority of complications in both groups were minor. Limitations are related to its retrospective nature, including an expected bodyweight difference between study groups. Right-sided, incisional gastropexy is a safe and fast procedure that can be performed in dogs already undergoing anesthesia for emergency gastrointestinal surgery without increasing morbidity and should be recommended for patients deemed at risk of GDV undergoing emergency exploratory laparotomy for gastrointestinal procedures.