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How effective are trained #dogs at alerting their owners to changes in blood #glycaemic levels?: Variations in performance of glycaemia alert dogs
https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0210092
Dogs varied in their performance, with median sensitivity to out-of-range episodes at 70% (25th percentile = 50, 75th percentile = 95). To hypoglycaemic episodes the median sensitivity was 83% (66–94%) while to hyperglyaemic episodes it was 67% (17–91%). The median positive predictive value (PPV) was 81% (68–94%), i.e. on average 81% of alerts occurred when glucose levels were out of target range. For four dogs, PPV was 100%. Individual characteristics of the dog, the partnership and the household were significantly associated with performance (e.g., whether the dog was previously a pet, when it was trained, whether its partner was an adult or child).
Conclusions
The large sample shows that the individual performance of dogs is variable, but overall their sensitivity and specificity to OOR episodes are better than previous studies suggest. Results show that optimal performance of glycaemic alert dogs depends not only on good initial and ongoing training, but also careful selection of dogs for the conditions in which they will be working
How effective are trained #dogs at alerting their owners to changes in blood #glycaemic levels?: Variations in performance of glycaemia alert dogs
https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0210092
Dogs varied in their performance, with median sensitivity to out-of-range episodes at 70% (25th percentile = 50, 75th percentile = 95). To hypoglycaemic episodes the median sensitivity was 83% (66–94%) while to hyperglyaemic episodes it was 67% (17–91%). The median positive predictive value (PPV) was 81% (68–94%), i.e. on average 81% of alerts occurred when glucose levels were out of target range. For four dogs, PPV was 100%. Individual characteristics of the dog, the partnership and the household were significantly associated with performance (e.g., whether the dog was previously a pet, when it was trained, whether its partner was an adult or child).
Conclusions
The large sample shows that the individual performance of dogs is variable, but overall their sensitivity and specificity to OOR episodes are better than previous studies suggest. Results show that optimal performance of glycaemic alert dogs depends not only on good initial and ongoing training, but also careful selection of dogs for the conditions in which they will be working
journals.plos.org
How effective are trained dogs at alerting their owners to changes in blood glycaemic levels?: Variations in performance of glycaemia…
Aims Domestic dogs are trained to a wide variety of roles including an increasing number of medical assistance tasks. Glycaemia alert dogs are reported to greatly improve the quality of life of owners living with Type 1 diabetes. Research into their value…
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Occurrence of #Salmonella, Campylobacter, Clostridium and Enterobacteriaceae in raw #meat-based diets for #dogs
The practice of feeding raw meat-based diets (RMBD) to dogs has increased in popularity in recent years. However, RMBD are based on offal that has not undergone any type of treatment to reduce the microbial content, so there is a risk of potential pathogenic microorganisms being present.
Enterobacteriaceae were detected in all 60 samples and in 31 samples exceeded a level of 5000 bacteria/g, which is the threshold for satisfactory microbial hygiene according to EU regulations. In two samples, the amount of C. perfringens exceeded 5000 bacteria/g, which is the maximum level of anaerobic bacteria permitted by Swedish national guidelines. Salmonella species were found in four (7 per cent) and Campylobacter species in three (5 per cent) samples. These results show that it is critical to maintain good hygiene when storing, handling and feeding RMBD, in order to limit the potential health risks to animals and humans, especially young and immunocompromised individuals.
https://veterinaryrecord.bmj.com/content/184/14/442
Occurrence of #Salmonella, Campylobacter, Clostridium and Enterobacteriaceae in raw #meat-based diets for #dogs
The practice of feeding raw meat-based diets (RMBD) to dogs has increased in popularity in recent years. However, RMBD are based on offal that has not undergone any type of treatment to reduce the microbial content, so there is a risk of potential pathogenic microorganisms being present.
Enterobacteriaceae were detected in all 60 samples and in 31 samples exceeded a level of 5000 bacteria/g, which is the threshold for satisfactory microbial hygiene according to EU regulations. In two samples, the amount of C. perfringens exceeded 5000 bacteria/g, which is the maximum level of anaerobic bacteria permitted by Swedish national guidelines. Salmonella species were found in four (7 per cent) and Campylobacter species in three (5 per cent) samples. These results show that it is critical to maintain good hygiene when storing, handling and feeding RMBD, in order to limit the potential health risks to animals and humans, especially young and immunocompromised individuals.
https://veterinaryrecord.bmj.com/content/184/14/442
Veterinary Record
Occurrence of Salmonella, Campylobacter, Clostridium and Enterobacteriaceae in raw meat-based diets for dogs
The practice of feeding raw meat-based diets (RMBD) to dogs has increased in popularity in recent years. However, RMBD are based on offal that has not undergone any type of treatment to reduce the microbial content, so there is a risk of potential pathogenic…
Effectiveness of Seizure #Dogs for People With Severe Refractory #EpilepsyResults From the EPISODE Study
https://2medical.news/2024/03/15/effectiveness-of-seizure-dogs-for-people-with-severe-refractory-epilepsyresults-from-the-episode-study/
https://2medical.news/2024/03/15/effectiveness-of-seizure-dogs-for-people-with-severe-refractory-epilepsyresults-from-the-episode-study/
2Medical.News
Effectiveness of Seizure #Dogs for People With Severe Refractory #EpilepsyResults From the EPISODE Study
Background and ObjectivesThe aim of this study was to evaluate whether people living with severe medically refractory epilepsy (PSRE) benefit from a seizure dog.MethodsAn individual-level stepped-w…