Behind the Scenes at Veterinary Specialty Care Blue Pearl

WRITTEN BY Dr. VALERIE NESSER Veterinary Specialty Care

Meet Rosie, a sweet Rottweiler puppy who was found as a stray in an unfortunate circumstance: a foreign object sticking out of her head.

A Good Samaritan of Orangeburg found Rosie abandoned and alone and brought her to Veterinary Special Care in Summerville for medical attention.

The team members of the Emergency Service triaged Rosie upon intake to the hospital which includes taking her vital parameters, collecting bloodwork samples, and initiating basic treatments. Fortunately, Rosie was in stable condition and an IV catheter was placed in her front leg to administer pain medications and sedation necessary for skull x-rays to evaluate the damage done by the foreign object in her head.

The X-rays confirmed suspicions that the foreign object was an arrow with a pointed metal tip. Although the arrowhead had penetrated deep into the sinuses of the skull, all were relieved to see that the arrowhead had not damaged critical structures including the bony barrier which protects the brain.

The emergency team made great efforts to remove the arrowhead under general anesthesia, however; the shaft of the arrow became dislodged from the metal arrowhead which was seated deep within the bony surfaces of the skull out of reach from the surface of her head.

Rosie’s case was transferred to the surgery service under the care of Dr. Valerie Nesser, a board certified veterinary surgeon. Dr. Nesser along with veterinary technicians Melissa Couch and Rebecca Driggers prepared Rosie for surgery.

Rosie was anesthetized and the fur around the surgical site was clipped and aseptically prepped. Routine anesthetic monitoring equipment was applied including ECG leads to monitor her heart rate and rhythm, doppler and oscillometric systems for blood pressure monitoring, esophageal thermometer to monitor temperature, and CO2 breathing monitoring attached to the endotracheal tube which delivers oxygen and inhalant anesthetic.

The surgical site was draped to create a sterile field and the surgery instrument packs were opened and organized. A pneumatic powered high speed surgical drill was assembled with a tiny bur attachment.

The round hole in Rosies head measured approximately 7mm, about the diameter of a pea. The skin and soft tissues around the hole were gently retracted to expose the bony entrance lesion. The arrowhead was at least 1cm deep to the surface of the skull. The 7mm bony hole was slowly widened with the high speed bur to create a window around the arrowhead. Once the bony window was wide enough and the arrowhead was visualized, surgical instruments were used to grasp and remove it. The surgical site was closed with stitches and Rosie recovered smoothly from general anesthesia.

Rosie’s care was taken over by Libby and Mace’s Place Rescue and she was discharged to a wonderful foster family who adores her. Rosie is expected to make a full recovery thanks to all involved with her care! ■