ROSE: Alternative for Cancelled and Inconclusive Cytopathologic Examinations, as Well as Professional Training at the UNESP-Botucatu Veterinary Hospital

Abstract

ROSE is a method for fast sample evaluation that does not compromise sensitivity and specificity in the hospital environment when establishing the diagnosis and the therapeutic protocol. The technique is already well-established in human medicine as it operates within the standard operational procedure, reducing the rates of inconclusive results and cancelled cytopathology assays in the hospital environment. However, its application is scarce in Veterinary Medicine, including in hospitals where intensive care is available. This study aims at conducting a case-by-case assessment of inconclusive and cancelled examinations in the Cytopathology Outpatient Clinic at UNESP (HV), Botucatu, Brazil, from 2012 to 2016 and ascertains the causes. For this purpose, a retrospective study was conducted for 9587 examinations in canines, of which 4.1% and 10.44% were inconclusive and cancelled, respectively. These results are not in line with ROSE, which foresees a total rate of 5% for these occurrences. The reasons for these high rates in the outpatient clinic were the lack of a Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) and the relative inexperience of the residents in a university hospital. Therefore, with the adoption of the ROSE protocol for veterinary cytopathological examinations, together with adequate training for the outpatient professionals responsible for the examinations, the goals set forth by the ROSE protocol would be met and the rates of inconclusive and cancelled examinations would decrease considerably. Lastly, this study hopes to contribute towards the diagnosis and therapeutic protocols of the main diseases affecting dogs.