Large animal studies

  

Large animals (pigs) are the mainstay of medical experimentation for several reasons:
— Availability
— Homogeneous stock: their ability to produce homogeneous stock with similar physiological parameters allows for statistical analysis and confirmation of the reliability of the results obtained
— Organ and anatomical similarity: pigs' organ and anatomical systems are similar in size and features to those of humans. This distinguishes them from laboratory rodents, which are commonly used in preclinical research.

Two types of pigs are used in the experiment:
— Meat pigs bred in the Leningrad region.

Advantages: easy to obtain, cheap, available and simple logistics.
— Vietnamese pot-bellied – purchased from a certified breeding farm.
Advantages: stable body weight, easy care.

In accordance with the order of the St. Petersburg Veterinary Department, our specialists are permitted to work with pigs without quarantine, as we strictly adhere to the rules of animal transport and disposal.

The large animal unit is designed as an operating theatre for cardiac surgery and has the following facilities:
— There are 2 operating tables.
— Shadowless double-head surgical lights.
— One of the tables is equipped with a video recording system.
— The operating theatre is equipped with mechanical ventilation and inhalation anaesthesia systems.
— Constant monitoring of physiological parameters (O2, CO2, cardiac, respiration, temperature and other parameters).
— Above each operating table there is a ramp with a constant supply of medical gases, O2, CO2, air, vacuum, ventilator gas removal.
— There are patient warming devices, resuscitation equipment, infusion equipment, defibrillator.
— All types of anaesthesia, gas anaesthesia (isoflurane, sevoflurane), intravenous anaesthesia, local anaesthesia, conduction anaesthesia and others are available.
— Adjacent to the operating theatre is a room with 2 resuscitation beds for preparation of animals for surgery and post-operative observation.

Anaesthesia care and resuscitation during surgery and in the post-operative period are provided by the veterinarians of the Preclinical Translational Research Centre.

The operating theatre and adjoining rooms are radiologically protected and are equipped with both a standard X-ray machine with CR cassettes and digitizer and a C-arm machine, which allows for X-ray imaging.

Equipment used

Here is just some of the equipment we use to carry out large animal studies:
— Philips epic 7 ultrasound machine, which includes a transesophageal sector array transducer in addition to the traditional set.
— A Karl Storz laparoscopy tower with a complete basic set of instruments for all types of minimally invasive surgery.
— A DaVinci robotic surgical system that can be used to train residents in porcine surgical procedures.
— A portable ventilator, a portable ultrasound machine and a portable x-ray machine for post-operative examination and resuscitation of animals.

If you have a need for a large animal study, please contact us at: glp@almazovcentre.ru