Comparison of hematologic and biochemical results on blood obtained by jugular venipuncture as compared with intravenous catheter in adult horses.

The research sets out to compare the biochemical and hematologic results of blood taken directly from horse’s jugular vein (venipuncture) with the ones obtained via an intravenous catheter (IVC) in adult horses. The results indicated no significant difference between these two methods, regardless of the fluid administration procedure in place.

Objective and Hypothesis

The researchers sought to test whether the method of blood collection in hospitalized horses makes a difference in the results of plasma chemistry and complete blood count (CBC) tests. The hypothesis was that there will be no significant differences between the data obtained via direct jugular venipuncture versus via IVC.

Methodology

• The study was conducted in a prospective and blinded cross-over design, meaning the researchers didn’t know which samples were from which blood extraction method, therefore reducing potential bias.
• Fifty hospitalized adult horses participated in the research. Half of them were receiving constant rate crystalloid therapy and the other half were being given low volume intravenous medication.
• Blood samples were collected from each horse in two ways: directly from the jugular vein (venipuncture) and from an intravenous catheter in the other jugular vein.
• All samples were submitted for the same tests, including plasma chemistry analysis, CBC, plasma glucose concentration, packed cell volume (PCV), and total protein concentration.
• The data were analyzed using a Student’s t-test which compensated for unequal variances between the two groups, and further corrected using Bonferroni correction to account for multiple comparisons.

Results and Conclusion

• According to the statistical analysis, none of the 24 different analyses showed considerable distinction between the two methods of sampling—whether it was via venipuncture or IVC.
• Consequently, the researchers concluded that acquiring blood samples via an intravenous catheter provides clinical results equivalent to those acquired by direct venipuncture.
• The research did, however, necessitate further research to explore whether the IVC method could increase the chance of complications like phlebitis (vein inflammation) or bacteremia (bacteria in the blood).