J. Jill Heatley, MS, DVM, DABVP (Avian Practice, Reptile & Amphibian Practice), DACZM presented this live, interactive webinar. View the RACE-approved webinar recording, then take the brief quiz to earn 1 hour of continuing education credit. Clinicopathologic evaluation of reptiles and amphibians is useful for health assessment and monitoring. There are specific considerations when evaluating data from this taxonomic group, including sex, age, time of year/season, reproductive status, diet, captive versus wild, geographic location, methodology, and anticoagulant. In this informative webinar Dr. Heatley discussed hematology, biochemistry, and urinalysis features of reptiles and amphibians as well as the clinical relevance . . .
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References
Taken from both the literature and directly from Dr. Heatley’s presentation.
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Enzymes
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Hematology
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Lactate
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Protein
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Flower JE, Byrd J, Cray C, Allender MC. Plasma electrophoretic profiles and hemoglobin binding protein reference intervals in the eastern box turtle (Terrapene carolina carolina) and influences of age, sex, season, and location. J Zoo Wildl Med. 2014 Dec;45(4):836-42. doi: 10.1638/2014-0035.1. PMID: 25632671.
Gicking JC, Foley AM, Harr KE, Raskin RE, Jacobson E. Plasma protein electrophoresis of the Atlantic loggerhead sea turtle, Carretta carretta. Journal of Herpetological Medicine and Surgery. 2004;14 (3): 13–18. doi: 10.5818/1529-9651.14.3.13.
Hawkey C, Hart MG. An analysis of the incidence of hyperfibrinogenaemia in birds with bacterial infections. Avian Pathol. 1988;17(2):427-32. doi: 10.1080/03079458808436460. PMID: 18766699.
Laube A, Altherr B, Clauss M, Hatt JM. Reference intervals for bile acids and protein electrophoresis in plasma of captive panther chameleons (Furcifer pardalis): A first approach. Journal of Herpetological Medicine and Surgery. 2018; 28 (3-4): 99–106. doi: 10.5818/17-12-139.1.
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Majorek KA, Porebski PJ, Dayal A, et al. Structural and immunologic characterization of bovine, horse, and rabbit serum albumins. Mol Immunol. 2012 Oct;52(3-4):174-82. doi: 10.1016/j.molimm.2012.05.011. Epub 2012 Jun 6. PMID: 22677715; PMCID: PMC3401331.
Moore AR, Allender MC, Mitchell MA, MacNeill AL. Evaluation of plasma fibrinogen concentration as a diagnostic indicator of inflammation in red-eared sliders (Trachemys scripta elegans). J Am Vet Med Assoc. 2015 Jan 15;246(2):245-53. doi: 10.2460/javma.246.2.245. PMID: 25554942.
Nurdiansyah R, Rifa’i M. A comparative analysis of serum albumin from different species to determine a natural source of albumin that might be useful for human therapy. Journal of Taibah University Medical Sciences. 2016 Jun 1;11(3):243-9. doi: 10.1016/j.jtumed.2016.04.003.
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Rosenberg JF, Wellehan JF, Crevasse SE, Cray C, Stacy NI. Reference intervals for erythrocyte sedimentation rate, lactate, fibrinogen, hematology, and plasma protein electrophoresis in clinically healthy captive gopher tortoises (Gopherus polyphemus). J Zoo Wildl Med. 2018 Sep;49(3):520-527. doi: 10.1638/2017-0183.1. PMID: 30212317.
Venipuncture
Bogan Jr JE, Dickerson F. Iatrogenic acute pseudo-pericardial tamponade in a dusky pygmy rattlesnake (Sistrurus miliarius barbouri). Journal of Herpetological Medicine and Surgery. 2021 Oct 1;31(3):179-83. doi: 10.5818/JHMS-D-20-00005.
Comolli JR, McHale B, Kehoe S, Mayer J. Cardiac tamponade following cardiocentesis in a ball python (Python regius). Journal of Herpetological Medicine and Surgery. 2022 Apr 1;32(2):116-8. doi: 10.5818/JHMS-D-21-00019.
Selleri P, Di Girolamo N. Cardiac tamponade following cardiocentesis in a cardiopathic boa constrictor imperator (Boa constrictor imperator). J Small Anim Pract. 2012 Aug;53(8):487. doi: 10.1111/j.1748-5827.2012.01232.x. Epub 2012 Jul 11. PMID: 22784300.
Heatley JJ. Clinical pathology of reptiles. December 6, 2024. LafeberVet website. Available at https://lafeber.com/vet/clinical-pathology-of-herptiles/