January 2026: Updates from the Literature

Philip R Judge BVSc MVS PG Cert Vet Stud MACVSc (Vet Emergency and Critical Care; Medicine of Dogs)

Introduction

It’s hard to keep up sometimes – and keeping up to date with advances in scientific knowledge is no different. That’s why, each month, we’ll pick our top choice of the top articles from scientific literature – and put a simple summary here – just for you!

Here’s what’s happened this month!

1: Does Glutamine Supplementation Affect Recovery in Dogs with CPV-2?

Melo AMC, Ghedin V, Romano FS, Natalia Ribeiro Dos S, Pellegri LAP, Ichikawa RS, Hussni MF, Paes AC, Guimarães-Okamoto PTC, Rahal SC, Melchert A. Oral glutamine supplementation in dogs infected with canine parvovirus type 2. Top Companion Anim Med. 2025 Dec 5;70:101040. 

This study investigated oral glutamine supplementation in dogs with Canine Parvovirus (CPV-2). Twenty dogs were split into a glutamine group and a control group. While no differences were found in hospitalization time or time to start eating, the glutamine group had a significantly shorter duration of diarrhea (2.4 vs. 4.9 days) and better fecal scores. The glutamine group also had zero mortality compared to 10% in the control group. The researchers conclude that glutamine is a beneficial adjunctive treatment for CPV-2, reducing diarrhea severity and showing potential for improving survival.

2: Do Lung Ultrasound Findings Correlate with Arterial Blood Gas Findings?

Medico D, Tommasi I, Sarotti D, Rabozzi R, Oricco S. Retrospective Evaluation of the Relationship Between Lung Ultrasound Score and Arterial Blood Gas Analysis in Dogs: Fifty-Six Examinations in 42 Cases (2022-2023). J Vet Emerg Crit Care (San Antonio). 2025 Nov-Dec;35(6):702-709. doi: 10.1111/vec.70067. Epub 2025 Dec 12. PMID: 41386661.

This retrospective study in dogs investigated the relationship between Lung Ultrasound Score (LUSS) and oxygenation. The LUSS, which quantifies lung aeration from 0 to 24, showed a strong negative correlation with the PaO₂:FiO₂ ratio (r = -0.79) and a positive correlation with the alveolar-arterial gradient (r = 0.68). The correlation was especially strong in cases of cardiogenic pulmonary edema. The researchers conclude that the LUSS is an effective tool for assessing the severity of lung aeration loss and respiratory status in dogs.

3: What Are the Current Recommendations for Antibiotic Use in Surgical Prophylaxis in Dogs and Cats?

Allerton F, Sørensen TM, Scahill K, Ruperez JE, Swinbourne F, Verwilghen DR, Nolff MC, Foroutan F, Baines SJ, Vilen A, Pelligand L, Broens EM, Toutain PL, Brennan ML, Mooney T, Clarke S, Miles JE, Granick JL, Winsborg Y, Jessen LR, Weese JS; European Network for Optimization of Veterinary Antimicrobial Therapy (ENOVAT) guidelines and the ESCMID Study Group for Veterinary Microbiology (ESGVM). European Network for Optimization of Veterinary Antimicrobial Therapy (ENOVAT) 2025 guidelines for surgical antimicrobial prophylaxis in dogs and cats. J Small Anim Pract. 2025 Dec 23. doi: 10.1111/jsap.70072. Epub ahead of print. PMID: 41431404.

1. Recommendation 1 – Peri-operative antimicrobial use in neutering: In dogs and cats undergoing neutering, we recommend against the use of peri-operative surgical antimicrobial prophylaxis (Strong recommendation, low-certainty evidence. Level of agreement 100% (17/17))
2. Recommendation 2 – Post-operative antimicrobial use in neutering: In dogs and cats undergoing neutering, we recommend against the use of post-operative surgical antimicrobial prophylaxis (Strong recommendation, low-certainty evidence. Level of agreement 100% (17/17))
3. Recommendation 3 – Peri-operative antimicrobial use in other clean procedures: In dogs and cats undergoing clean soft tissue surgical procedures other than neutering (e.g. splenectomy, dermal mass removal, exploratory laparotomy, gastropexy), we recommend against the use of peri-operative surgical antimicrobial prophylaxis (Strong recommendation, very low-certainty evidence. Level of agreement 100% (17/17))
4. Recommendation 4 – Post-operative antimicrobial use in other clean procedures: In dogs and cats undergoing clean soft tissue surgical procedures other than neutering (e.g. splenectomy, dermal mass removal, exploratory laparotomy, gastropexy), we recommend against the use of post-operative surgical antimicrobial prophylaxis (Strong recommendation, very low-certainty evidence. Level of agreement 100% (17/17))
5. Recommendation 5 – Peri-operative antimicrobial use in clean-contaminated urologic procedures: In dogs and cats undergoing clean-contaminated urological surgical procedures, we suggest not to use peri-operative surgical antimicrobial prophylaxis (Conditional recommendation, very low-certainty evidence. Level of agreement 100% (17/17))
6. Recommendation 6 – Post-operative antimicrobial use in clean-contaminated urologic procedures: In dogs and cats undergoing clean-contaminated urological surgical procedures, we recommend against the use of post-operative surgical antimicrobial prophylaxis (Strong recommendation, very low-certainty evidence. Level of agreement 100% (17/17))
7. Recommendation 7 – Peri-operative antimicrobial use in clean-contaminated gastrointestinal procedures: In dogs and cats undergoing clean-contaminated gastrointestinal surgical procedures, we suggest administration of peri-operative surgical antimicrobial prophylaxis (Conditional recommendation, very low-certainty evidence. Level of agreement 94% (16/17))
8. Recommendation 8 – Post-operative antimicrobial use in clean-contaminated gastrointestinal procedures: In dogs and cats undergoing clean-contaminated gastrointestinal surgical procedures, we recommend against the use of post-operative surgical antimicrobial prophylaxis (Strong recommendation, very low-certainty evidence. Level of agreement 100% (17/17))
9. Recommendation 9 – Peri-operative antimicrobial use in other clean-contaminated procedures: In dogs and cats undergoing clean-contaminated surgical procedures, not involving the urological or gastrointestinal tracts (e.g. corrective interventions for brachycephalic obstructive airway syndrome), we recommend against the use of peri-operative surgical antimicrobial prophylaxis (Strong recommendation, very low-certainty evidence. Level of agreement 100% (17/17))
10. Recommendation 10 – Post-operative antimicrobial use in other clean-contaminated procedures: In dogs and cats undergoing clean-contaminated surgical procedures not involving the urological or gastrointestinal tracts (e.g. corrective interventions for brachycephalic obstructive airway syndrome), we recommend against the use of post-operative surgical antimicrobial prophylaxis (Strong recommendation, very low-certainty evidence. Level of agreement 100% (17/17))
11. Recommendation 11 – Peri-operative antimicrobial use in contaminated procedures: In dogs and cats undergoing contaminated soft tissue surgical procedures, we suggest administration of peri-operative surgical antimicrobial prophylaxis (Conditional recommendation, very low-certainty evidence. Level of agreement 100% (17/17))
12. Recommendation 12 – Post-operative antimicrobial use in contaminated procedures: In dogs and cats undergoing contaminated soft tissue surgical procedures, we suggest that post-operative surgical antimicrobial prophylaxis should be used for 3 to 5 days with daily review and adaptation/de-escalation in line with culture and susceptibility test results (Conditional recommendation, very low-certainty evidence. Level of agreement 88% (15/17))
13. Recommendation 13 – Peri-operative antimicrobial use in non-implant orthopaedic procedures: In dogs and cats undergoing clean orthopaedic surgical procedures not involving the placement of an implant, we suggest not to use peri-operative surgical antimicrobial prophylaxis (Conditional recommendation, very low-certainty evidence. Level of agreement 100% (17/17))
14. Recommendation 14 – Post-operative antimicrobial use in non-implant orthopaedic procedures: In dogs and cats undergoing clean orthopaedic surgical procedures not involving the placement of an implant, we recommend against the use of post-operative surgical antimicrobial prophylaxis (Strong recommendation, low-certainty evidence. Level of agreement 100% (17/17))
15. Recommendation 15 – Peri-operative antimicrobial use in implant orthopaedic procedures: In dogs and cats undergoing clean orthopaedic surgical procedures involving the placement of an implant, we suggest administration of peri-operative surgical antimicrobial prophylaxis (Conditional recommendation, very low-certainty evidence. Level of agreement 100% (17/17))
16. Recommendation 16 – Post-operative antimicrobial use in implant orthopaedic procedures: In dogs and cats undergoing clean orthopaedic surgical procedures involving the placement of an implant, we recommend against the use of post-operative surgical antimicrobial prophylaxis (Strong recommendation, moderate-certainty evidence. Level of agreement 100% (17/17))
17. Recommendation 17 – Peri-operative antimicrobial use in TPLO procedures: In dogs undergoing a Tibial Plateau Levelling Osteotomy (TPLO) procedure, we suggest administration of peri-operative surgical antimicrobial prophylaxis (Conditional recommendation, very low-certainty evidence. Level of agreement 94% (16/17))
18. Recommendation 18 – Post-operative antimicrobial use in TPLO procedures: In dogs undergoing a Tibial Plateau Levelling Osteotomy (TPLO) procedure, we suggest not to use post-operative surgical antimicrobial prophylaxis (Conditional recommendation, very low-certainty evidence. Level of agreement 100% (17/17))