Escala de coma de Glasgow pediátrica modificada para cães

Abstract

Considering that the consciousness level corresponds to the degree of behavioral alert shown by individuals and that the later is subject to strong variation among neurological patients, the relevance of its evaluation and measurement becomes clear. In that account, several scales were developed and proposed to human medicine, all of them based on the analysis of the patients and consequent scoring regarding their global consciousness level every other moment. The technological development and improved research of the nervous system enhanced the neurological knowledge regarding veterinary medicine. Advances in both scientific production and medical clinic were achieved, as in the philosophical debate about animal well-being and consciousness. Yet, additional research is required in order to develop safer and more accurate clinical instruments and proceedings. The objective of the present work is to modify the Pediatric Glasgow’s Scale of Coma focusing on its application in veterinarian clinical neurology, in order to evaluate and measure the consciousness levels ofcanine patients. Another objective is to test the applicability of the Glasgow’s Scale for Dogs. This study was conducted on 30 adult canine patients, disregarding the gender, race, and weight, which presented pathological processes causing them neurological changes suitable for consciousness level evaluation. Animals were provided by the Department of Clinic Neurology and Psychobiology of the Medical Clinic for Small Animals in the Veterinary Hospital of the Department of Veterinary Medicine (DMV) of the University Federal Rural of Pernambuco (UFRPE). The Glasgow’s Scale of Coma Modified for Dogs was applied in three distinct moments (m0, m1 e m2) with an interval of 48 hours between them, leading to 90 recorded events. Data were submitted to factorial analysis, and results suggested that the Glasgow’s Scale of Coma Modified for Dogs is valid for the evaluation of the consciousness levels of adult dogs in the ambulatory routine.