The supply and demand for laboratory animal veterinarians from 1980 to 2005. Contemporary Topic 36 (2): 39.
Not reviewed.

Frequently Asked Questions About the Public Health Service Policy on Humane Care and Use of Laboratory Animals. Contemporary Topics 36 (2): 47.
This article reflects answers to the 7 mostly commonly asked questions about PHS policy and how facilities can integrate PHS and USDA regulations.
Question1: Difference between significant and minor deficiencies
A significant deficiency refers to a deficiency which is or may be a threat to the health and safety of animals. IACUC semi-annual reviews should categorize deficiences and outline a corrective plan. Serious deficiencies may be reported in a timely fashion to OPRR. USDA requires that serious deficiences not corrected within the planned time frame must be reported to APHIS within 15 business days.
Question 2: IACUC review of collaborative research efforts
All work funded by PHS must be reviewed. Performance sites must have assurances on file with OPRR. If samples are just being obtained from outside sources, the IACUC must review the method of collection. Other agencies (i.e. U.S. Fish and Wildlife, Dept. of Interior, CITES, CDC) might need to be involved.
Question 3: IACUC Composition
PHS requires 5 members: veterinarian, scientist and non-affiliated member and two more. USDA requires only the 3 listed members.
Question 4: Description of veterinarians participating in program
The C.V. of a veterinarian is inadequate when submitted an OPRR assurance statement. If the vet is not a full-time employee, the anticipated number and frequency of visits should be listed.
Question 5: Multiple Survival Surgery justification
Multiple surgeries are permitted when 1) scientifically justified and IACUC approved and 2)when needed as a routine veterinary procedure (as per USDA regulations). Any other circumstances must be reviewed and approved by APHIS. COST SAVINGS ALONE IS AN INADEQUATE JUSTIFICATION.
Question 6: Guidelines for use of amphibians, reptiles and fish in research
PHS policy provides no guidelines for the care and use of any species, but assigns that task to the IACUC. OPRR recommends that the advice of experts be obtained for these species.
Question 7: Animal number tracking and coordination with pre-approved numbers
PHS nor USDA explicitly require tracking animal usage by investigators, but it is necessary to monitor and document the number of animals acquired and used in approved activities. The choice on how to do this is delegated to each facility.
Question 8: Lab inspection during semi-annual IACUC reviews
Each institution is responsible for all animal-related activities. The degree, frequency and method of oversight depends on the nature of the activity. PHS policy requires complaince with USDA regs regarding areas where USDA-covered species are maintained for more than 12 hours.
Questions:
1. What do the following acronyms stand for:
OPRR, CITES, APHIS
2. What is the minimum number of IACUC members as per
a. PHS policy
b. USDA policy
3. What are the criteria for approval of multiple major surgeries?
4. What is the definition of a significant deficiency?
Answers:
1. OPRR=Office for Protection from Research Risks
CITES=Internation Convention on Trade in Endangered Species of Fauna
and Flora
APHIS=Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service
2. a. PHS requires 5
b. USDA requires 3
3. Criteria are those scientifically justified (and IACUC approved) and routine veterinary care. All others must be approved by APHIS.
4. A significant deficiency is one that is or may be a threat to the health or safety of animals.

An Efficient Approach to Performing and Documenting Semiannual Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee Inspections of Animal Facilities. Contemporary Topics 36 (2): 51.
The University of Chicago developed a one-page, three-ply ticket form to identify defiencies nooted during IACUC semiannual inspections of animal facilities. This form guides the team to:
1. Remember the standards and pertinent issues when inspecting facilities.
2. Identify and distinguish between significant and minor deficiencies.
3. Assign appropriate deadlines for correction.
4. Communicate the information to the facility manager/investigator.
The form is completed and given to the responsible party at the conclusion of the inspection. This allows immediate feedback and serves as an effective means of communication. A companion document, "Guidelines for Assigning Correction Deadlines", was prepared to assist inspectors to immediately define appropriate schedules for correcting cited deficiencies.
Questions:
1. What agencies require the Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee to conduct semiannual reviews of animal facilities?
2. What published guidelines are used to evaluate animal facilities?
Answers:
1. USDA, Office of Protection from Research Risks (OPRR)/ National Institutes of Health (NIH)
2. Animal Welfare Act, ILAR Guide for the Care and Use of Laboratory Animals

Statistics and the Issue of Animal Numbers in Research. Contemporary Topics 36 (2): 54.
Hypothesis Tests and Sample Size:
The most common statistical inferential procedures are analysis of variance, regression and correlation analysis, and categorical data analysis procedures (e.g. percentages and chi-squared test). Most inferential problems are framed by a determination of whether there is sufficiently strong evidence in the data to reject a certain prespecified null hypothesis in favor of an alternative hypothesis. Usually, the null hypothesis is the claim that the effect is not large or important (in theory zero), whereas the alternative hypothesis is the claim that the effect is large (in theory non-zero). The determination of whether the data in the sample possess sufficiently strong evidence to render a rejection is a subject of two possible errors: Type I and Type II. The probabilities of making these errors are denoted by alpha and beta, respectively. Alpha is usually set at 0.01 or 0.05 when using statistical methods. This guarantees that the Type I error will occur with a probability no higher than alpha, assuming the underlying assumptions of the procedure are valid. However, Type II error is dependent on, among other things, sample size (n). If n is too small the test will not be capable of detecting a difference (committing a Type II error). If n is too large the test will detect insignificant effects (committing a Type I error). Typically, beta is set somewhere between 0.10 and 0.30. Beta is usually set at 0.20 for clinical trials. This leads at most a 20% chance of concluding an effect is unimportant when it is really important. There is at least an 80% chance of concluding that a truly important effect is important. This is called the power of the test (i.e. Power = 1 - beta). A large number of effective treatments may have been overlooked, because the statistical designs had inadequate power to identify their effectiveness in 50 out of 71 trials examined by Freiman et. al. Optimum sample size depends on the number of groups, variability of data, size of the effect that is of interest, error risks that investigators are willing to tolerate, and choice of statistical method used to analyze the data.
The Three Rs:
Russel and Burch proposed the three Rs (Replace, Reduce, and Refine) and recommendations to the scientific community such that animal research be replaced by insentient material or a lower species and the number of animals in research be reduced and the research techniques be refined to reduce animal suffering. The Animal Welfare Act and subsequent documentation clearly reflect these principles. Statistical science can be especially effective in dealing with reduction. The two most pertinent statistical areas in this regard are estimation of sample size and experimental design.
Ways to Determine and Justify the Number of Animals: Pilot vs. Inferential Studies: A pilot study is a preliminary study to try out procedures and equipment and discover problems before the main study begins. Only a few animals are used (4-8 per group), only selected treatments are included. Statistical analysis is primarily descriptive using means, standard deviations, scatterplots, bar charts, and summary tables. Pilot studies are used to determine whether equipment and logistics work properly, estimate the standard deviations for the variables involved, and identify critical parameters that need to be controlled to reduce variability. An inferential study is one in which an inferential statistical procedure, such as analysis of variance or regression analysis, will be applied to the data for the purpose of making conclusions (inferences) about a population. To determine a sample size for an inferential study an effect size of interest must be chosen by the investigator. An effect size is simply the smallest mean difference that an investigator justifies as important for the statistical analysis to identify. Once an investigator has decided on an effect size there are usually 2 ways in which a proper sample size can be determined. One method is to survey pertinent literature, identifying studies that have similar variables and effect sizes and for which sample sizes were determined scientifically. The other preferred method is to conduct a sample size (power) analysis, for this an estimate of the standard deviation of the variable(s) must be obtained. If this information is not available a pilot study can be conducted to obtain an estimate.
Experimental Design:
A large number of statistical designs have been developed to enhance the capability of achieving research goals with the minimum number of animals: repeated measures, fractional factorials, blocking, and matched samples, to name a few. To assure information obtained from data is accurate several statistical principles are applied: randomization, blocking, model diagnostics, stratification, replication, use of covariates, and elimination of confounding variables. Selecting a continuous versus categorical variable as an outcome variable will require substantially fewer animals.
Questions:
1. What are the three Rs and who proposed them?
2. What is a Type I error?
3. What is a Type II error?
Answers:
1. Replacement, Reduction, and Refinement were proposed by Russell and Burch.
2. The error of rejecting a true null hypothesis, i.e. declaring that difference exists when it does not.
3. The error of failing to reject a false null hypothesis, i.e. declaring that difference does not exist when in fact it does.

Determination of Microbiological Contamination During Long-Term Storage of Sanitized Equipment. Contemporary Topics 36 (2): 60.
Keeping stored animal racks and cages in clean condition to avoid resanitization prior to use is a never ending dilemma. In most good laboratory practice testing facilities, it is often thought that the racks and cages stored for 2 or more weeks must be sanitized prior being placed into service. By culturing specimens from previously sanitized animal racks, it can be determined whether the microbial growth conditions would conflict with current requeriments. The study was initiated to establish technical guidelines for the resanitization of animal racks.
Design: Corning Hazleton's clean rack and cage storage area. Room without controlled air circulation or ventilation, other than the open door leading into the room. Racks located in the periphery of the room with doors remaining open. Room temperature maintained between 18-29ºC. Data collection initiated after cage washing to establish an initial level of contaminating organism. 40 sites and 4 racks (2 rats and 2 mouse) to be tested. Each rack of cages = 10 sample collection sites. 40 specimens cultured every other week during the initial 2-month period. Culture sites = areas common to animal contact if the cages were actually occupied.
Culture methods: RODAC (Replicate Organism Direct Agar Contact) plates and sterile swabs.
Results: During the first 2-months, bacterial counts detected only from RODAC-cultured cages with the exception of one sterile swab specimen taken approximately 1 month into the study (swab has been contaminated). During the next 4 months, only minimal contamination was observed (1 more swab by the technician). Of the 340 specimens collected, the highest colony counts identified during the study, other than two contaminated samples, were six fungi and four Staphylococcus sp.
Conclusions: the storage area for racks, cages and other unused equipment should be constructed so as to allow the equipment to remain clean and free of vermin. The storage conditions can contribute to the need for resanitizing prior to equipment use. The proper storage of racks and cages allows for several months to pass before it becomes necesary to resanitize prior to placing them into service. A facility providing a clean environment to store properly cleaned and sanitized equipment should anticipate a similar outcome.
Question:
1.- What is the most eficiency method to eliminate contamination?
2.- If you find dust?
Answered:
1.- A simple check of the quality of the cleanliness of the storage area is the appearence of dust on the clean equipment.
2.- If dust accumulates, action should be taken to determine the source and eliminate it to extend the cleanliness of the stored equipment.

Continous Maintenance Infusion Technique for Stable Anesthesia in the Dog, Using a-Chloralose. Contemporary Topics 36 (2): 62.
The purpose of this study was to determine a maintenance infusion regimen in the dog using alpha-chloralose. Alpha-chloralose is usually given as an IV bolus with supplementary boluses as needed. This can lead to decreases in blood pressure and increases in heart rate. A constant infusion rate of 29.25 mg/kg/h maintained adequate constant plasma chloralose concentration.
Questions:
1. Reported advantages of alpha-chloralose over IV barbituates include:
a. less interference with autonomic tone and reflexes
b. less effects on cardiac contractility
c. lack of direct electrophysiologic actions related to ion channel-blocking activity
d. all of the above
2. In dogs why should chloralose administration be preceded by pretreatment with a barbituate, opiod, alpha2 agonist or phenothiazine?
Answers:
1. d
2. Because chloralose alone is inadequate to induce a surgical plane of anesthesia.

Technique for Long-Term Catheterization of Large Abdominal Vessels in Growing Cattle. Contemporary Topics 36 (2): 66.
Polyethylene catheters were placed in the aorta and caudal vena cava of 10 month old bulls using a modification of the Seldinger technique. The laporatomy was performed using local anesthesia. Catheters remained patent for the 2 month duration of the study. The advantage of the technique was that local anesthesia was used which promotes rapid recovery.
No questions

Effects of Caging Type and Group Size on Selected Physiologic Variables in Rats. Contemporary Topics 36 (2): 69.
Telemetry recording sensors were surgically implanted in the abdominal aorta and housed on different caging environments to evaluate the effects of caging on activity and physiological parameters. Rats were housed on wire-bottom stainless steel (SS) cages and solid bottom polycarbonate (PC) cages, singly or in groups of 3. Animals housed in wire-bottom SS cages were significantly more physically active than those housed in solid-bottom PC cages. The multiple-housed animals on wire-bottom SS cages also had a significant increase in the amount of feed they required. Group housed animals had lower BP. SS cages are the most common housing condition for toxicological studies. Since rats are social animals and exhibit an overall preference for solid bottom cages, these results support previous studies that solid bottom, group housed animals are less stressed than singly housed animals in SS cages.
Questions:
1. Why are SS cages the most common housing environment in toxicological studies?
2. List 3 possible reasons that groups housed rats in SS caging consumed more food?
Ans.
1. To reduce confounding variables.
2. Food loss, increased energy need due to increase activity and increased loss of body heat, increased stress leads to increased food consumption.

Evaluation of Five Treatment Regimens and Five Diagnostic Methods for Murine Mites (Myocoptes musculinus and Myobia musculi). Contemporary Topics 36 (2): 73.
Mite infestation in B10.S, B10.S x SJL, Swiss/Webster, and C57BL females and males was treated with subcutaneous and oral Ivomec, Durasban added to the bedding twice weekly for 3 weeks, Ectiban added to the bedding on day 1 and day 8 and repeated at 3-week intervals for 3 treatment periods, and Atgard added to the bedding on day 1 and day 8 of a 2 week period. Skin scrapings, observation, stereomicroscopic examination, scotch tape, and hair pluck were used for diagnostic evaluations. Ivomec administered orally and Atgard completely eradicated both Myocoptes musculinus and Myobia musculi infestations.
QUESTIONS:
1. How was the oral Ivomec administered? Did this require IACUC approval?
2. Match the following
Ivomec Chlorpyrifos - Organophosphate
Durasban Permethrin
Ectiban Dichlorvos - Cholinesterase Inhibitor
Atgard GABA Inhibitor
3. (True or False) Myocoptes musculinus tends to locate on the head whereas Myobia musculi is located principally on the ventral region of the abdomen and in the inguinal area.
4. (True or False) If the infestation is severe one can find Myocoptes mite on the ead or Myobia mites on the ventral regions of mice.
5. (True or False) Atgard and Oral Ivomec kill the eggs of both species of mites.
6. (True or False) The Oral Ivomec treatment is solely an oral treatment.
7. (True or False) Stereomicroscopic examination seemed to be the most accurate method of evaluation of mite infestation.
8. List the diagnostic methods from most effective to least effective. Star the two methods which required anesthesia.
9. What anatomical feature of Myocoptes musculinus aided in infestation determination?
10. Describe mite ova after Atgard or Oral Ivomec treatment.
ANSWERS:
1. How was the oral Ivomec administered?
1 day prior to treatment water was withheld and the next day containing a dilution of 1 ml/L was offered to the mice ad lib for four consecutive days. For the 24 hours of water restriction - our IACUC would discuss this and approve it if this were the only way to insure transition to medicated water without animal loss.
2. Match the following
Ivomec GABA Inhibitor
Durasban Chlopyrifos - Organophosphate
Ectiban Permethrin
Atgard Dichlorvos - Cholinesterase Inhibitor
3. (False) Myocoptes musculinus tends to locate on thehead whereas Myobia musculi is located principally on the ventral region of the abdomen and in the inguinal area. Myobia musculi tends to locate on the head whereas Myocoptes musculinus is located principally on the ventral region of the abdomen and in the inguinal area.
4. (True) If the infestation is severe one can find Myocoptes mite on the head or Myobia mites on the ventral regions of mice.
5. (True) Atgard and Oral Ivomec kill the eggs of both species of mites.
6. ( False) The Oral Ivomec treatment is solely an oral treatment. Medicated water may leak from the water bottle to the bedding or drip on the head or face of the mice; thus, the treatment may be topical as well as oral.
7. (False) Stereomicroscopic examination seemed to be the most accurate method of evaluation of mite infestation. Skin Scrape seemed to be the most accurate method of evaluation of mite infestation.
8. List the diagnostic methods from most effective to least effective. Star the two methods which required anesthesia.
* Skin Scrape
* Stereomicroscopy
Scotch Tape
Hair Pluck
Observation
9. What anatomical feature of Myocoptes musculinus aided in infestation determination?
Orange Grasping Organs (Not Found On Citrus Farmers!!)
10. Describe mite ova after Atgard or Oral Ivomec treatment.
Mite ova have irregular outline and lose the granular appearance. Black inclusions are sometimes present internally and appear as crystals or bubbles. Alternatively, the internal material of the nonviable egg may have an irregular shape and sometimes appears to clump together multifocally.

Modification of the Bollman/Van Hook Method of a Two-Stage Hepatectomy in the Rat: A Simpler and Safer Surgical Technique. Contemporary Topics 36 (2): 77.
This paper describes a modification of the Bollman/van Hook method of two stage hepatectomy in the rat. Hepatectomy must be performed in 2 stages to avoid the causing the death of the animal.
Stage I: Uses 8 week old rats. NPO for 16 hours to reduce stomach volume. Partially occlude the hepatic portal vein and caudal vena cava. This leads to the development of collateral vessels.
Stage II: Perform one month later. "Removal" of the liver performed in this case. Verify collateral circulation after occluding hepatic portal vein and partially occluding vena cava. One ligature is placed around the vena cava (with the hepatic portal vein, bile duct, hepatic artery, and other small vessels), caudal to the liver. A second ligature is placed around the vena cava, cranial to the liver. In this experiment, they injected the animals with radiolabelled heparin, then euthanized the rats and collected the livers for examination. They found only trace suggestions of radioactivity in the livers, which they attributed to contamination by rupturing small vessels when removing the liver.
They suggest that this modification is safer since it results in decreased surgical time for the animal.
QUESTION: What was the modification?
ANSWER: In the original procedure, three ligatures are used in the second
stage operation, instead of two. The original method calls for the
hepatic portal vein, hepatic artery and bile duct to be ligated separately
from the caudal vena cava.

A Method for Minimizing the Effects of Biologic Diversity on the Measurement of Tumor Growth Rates. Contemporary Topics 36 (2): 80.
The author proposed a simple model for comparison of tumor growth rates based on exponential modeling (exponential tumor growth kinetics). This model provides a numerical value for the growth rate of a tumor that is applicable over a range of tumor sizes. The model is time independent and allows for direct comparison of tumor growth rates in individual animals even when some animals within the group must be euthanized earlier than planned. The model should not be used in tumors with complex kinetics such as initial tumor growth followed by tumor regression.
Question:
1. List 3 factors that may influence the accurate measurement of tumor size in vivo.
Answer:
1. Thickness of skin and subq tissue, errors in measurements by the investigator, and difficulty in measuring small tumors.

Ovarian Teratoma in a Pigtailed Macaque (Macaca nemestrina). Contemporary Topics 36 (2): 86.
This is a clinical case of an ovarian teratoma in an 8 year old pigtailed macaque (Macaca nemestrina). She had produced 2 live births out of the last 5 matings. At a routine laparoscopy, both ovaries were noted to be enlarged and dark in color. The animal was euthanatized and a necropsy was performed. At post-mortem, no other abnormalities were noted grossly. On histopath, the right ovary was cystic and revealed mature cartilage, glial tissue, adipose tissue, intestinal tissue, endocrine tissue and respiratory tissue. Mitotic figures were not detected. The left ovary revealed a dilated hemangioma.
Teratomas are rarely diagnosed in NHP, possibly due to the lack of gross abnormalities and follow-up histopath in many cases. It is unknown if it is responsible for infertility in NHP, but accounts for a small percentage of infertility in women.
Questions:
1. Give the genus and species of the pigtailed macaque.
2. T/F Ovarian teratomas are commonly diagnosed in macaques.
Answers:
1. Macaca nemestrina
2. F

Special Considertations for Keeping Cephalopods in Laboratory Facilities. Contemporary Topics 36 (2): 89.
This article describes the biology and life history, husbandry, common health problems, health monitoring and treatment, as well as information on postmortem evaluations of cephalopods. This article focuses on The European cuttlefish (Sepia officinalis ) and the Pacific long-finned squid (Sepioteuthis lessoniana).
Biology/Life History: The European cuttlefish and the Pacific long-finned squid have been maintained by the National Resource Center for Cephalopods (NRCC) of the Marine Biomedical Institute (MBI) in Galveston, TX for seven and six generations, respectively.
Squids and cuttlefish have a semelparous life history, which means that they grow rapidly to sexual maturity, spawn once, and die. Their life span and growth rate in the laboratory is temperature dependent, but rarely exceeds more than a year and often only 5 to 6 months in tropical species. Hatchlings exponentially grow for the first third of the life cycle at rates of 6 to 12% wet body weight per day. Growth is fueled by an almost purely protein diet from fish, shrimp, and crabs. Thirty to fifty percent of the diet at the this stage is for growth. The high protein diet results in the production of large amounts of ammonia. Cephalopods secrete 2 to 3 times the amount of ammonia per kg of body weight compared with fishes. They posses a sophisticated sensory neurophysiologic system, which enables these animals to have superb vision. They rely on vision for orientation and prey selection. However, they see things in black and white. They have a neurally controlled chromatophore system which is import
Husbandry: Water systems for culturing cephalopods is very important. It is essential that water filtration is processed in the following order: 1) water leaves the holding tanks and then passes through a foam fractionator (protein skimmer) which strips dissolved organic compounds including ink; 2) water then passes through a mechanical filter to remove particles down to 100 mm; 3) water then passes through high grade activated carbon, through a biological filter where ammonia is broken down to a less toxic form; 4) lastly, water passes through a UV sterilizer before returning to the animal holding tank. These animals have a very low tolerance for ammonia and nitrite levels. Ammonia-nitrogen and nitrite-nitrogen levels must be monitored daily for a week after arrival and then twice weekly thereafter. Cuttlefish will survive nitrate concentrations up to 150 ppm, but will constantly release ink when the nitrate concentration reaches 80 ppm. Squids are more sensitive to nitrate, requiring concentrations
Health Problems: Because of their thin epidermis, these animals are easily traumatized during confinement or handling. Minor skin lesions and abrasions can led to opportunistic bacterial infections and death. Cellular immunity consist of only one type of circulating hemocyte that clumps and isolates, but does not phagocytize, foreign material. Humoral immunity consist of a hemagglutinin protein that may function similar to lectins in humans. A skin condition develops in cuttlefishes when they began reaching over the dorsal mantel with their arms as if they were scratching, the behavior begins 3 to 7 days after a spike in ammonia concentration (>.8 ppm). Crowding leads to aggressive behavior resulting in caudal mantel damage and cuttlebone fracture.
Health Monitoring/Treatment: Because cephalopods eat large amounts of food, altered feeding behavior is usually the first indication that an animal may be sick. Animals should be alert and feed aggressively in the morning. Agitated behavior, swimming into sides of the tank, or reaching tentacles over the back maybe signs of deteriorating water quality. Behavioral changes may also be exhibited in subtle changes in chromatophore display patterns or changes in orientation to other animals in the tank. Animals may be treated prophlatically with IM injections into the base of the arms with chloramphenicol and gentamicin. Chloramphenicol may be added to the food once the animal starts to eat again. Nitrofurazone can be used as a dip.
Postmortem Evaluation: Cephalopod tissues contain high activity for protease enzymes so rapid tissue autolysis can occur. Necropsies should be performed as soon as it is determine that prognosis for survival is poor. Some organs will start to autolyze prior to death. Tissues found in the tank have been found to be of limited diagnostic value. Animals may be euthanized by rapid cooling on ice, 10% solution of magnesium chloride or ethanol in sea water. Squid and cuttlefish hemolymph can be collected from the muscular portion of the cephalic vein. A bacterial septicemia is suspected when hemocytes aggregate into visible clumps. The mantle cavity is opened by a ventral midline incision. Particular attention is given towards the digestive-gland/duct because these are the largest organs and the center of energy processing.
Questions:
1. Genus and species of European cuttlefish and Pacific long-finned squid.
2. Which antibiotics are effective in cephalopods?
3. What are three ions that are lethal to cephalopods?
4. What organs are important to evaluate during necropsy and why should necropsies be performed right away?
5. What cell type is diagnostic in determining bacterial sepsis in cephalopods?
Answers:
1. Sepia officinalis/ Sepioteuthis lessoniana
2. Chloramphenicol, nitrofurazone, gentamicin
3. Ammonia, nitrite, copper
4. digestive gland/duct; Cephalopod tissue has increased activity of protease enzyme therefore, rapid autolysis of organs can occur before death
5. Hemocyte

Retroperitoneal Hematoma in a Baboon. Contemporary Topics 36 (2): 94.
This is a clinical report of an adult male wild-caught baboon with a long-term placement of a catheter in the right femoral vein. After 3 weeks of experimental use involving investigation of the addictive potential of a benzodiazepine-like drug, the baboon showed signs of pot-bellied, withdrawal and decrease of appetite. Differential diagnosis included urolithiasis or urine retention, splenomegaly or neoplasia, and gastric dilatation. After infusion of contrast material via the implanted catheter, radiographies revealed a focal accumulation within the center of a mass. Needle aspirates confirmed it consists of an hematoma. A week after catheter removal, the hematoma was resolved by 50-60%. The catheter occlusion resulted in pooling the injected drug within the vessel, contributing to tissue irritation and necrosis. The phlebitis caused the retroperitoneal hemorrhage and hematoma.
Question:
T/F The benzodiazepines are reported to potentially cause thrombosis and
phlebitis at the site of injection.
ANSWER: True.