Causes and Outcome of Systemic Inflammatory Response Syndrome in Dogs: An Observational Study of 172 Cases.

Early detection of organ dysfunction, especially coagulopathy, is critical to improving survival in canine SIRS and sepsis.

This prospective observational study evaluated 172 SIRS/sepsis cases in dogs at a veterinary university teaching hospital over 12 months. Dogs meeting ≥2 of 4 SIRS criteria were categorized into nonseptic SIRS (G1, n=73), sepsis without organ dysfunction (G2a, n=25), severe sepsis (G2b, n=59), septic shock (G2c, n=8), and SIRS of unclear origin (G3, n=7). The leading etiologies were gastrointestinal diseases (35.5%), vector-borne diseases (16.3%), and neoplasia (12.8%). Organ dysfunction was present in 66.3% of cases, with the coagulation system most commonly affected (45.3%), followed by the cardiovascular system (27.3%), respiratory tract (8.1%), kidneys (7.6%), and liver (3.5%). Overall short-term survival to discharge was 77.6%, and long-term survival (≥4 weeks post-discharge) was 73%. Notably, dogs in the sepsis group (G2) demonstrated better survival than those with nonseptic SIRS (G1), which likely reflects underlying disease severity differences rather than a protective effect of infection. Cases with one or more organ dysfunctions had significantly higher short-term mortality than those without (p=0.031). These findings highlight the heterogeneous nature of SIRS in dogs and underscore the importance of systematic, continuous monitoring to facilitate early detection of organ dysfunction. Clinicians should be vigilant regarding coagulopathy as the most prevalent complication and tailor treatment accordingly based on the underlying etiology.

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