Postoperative complications of elective surgeries in dogs and cats determined by examining electronic and paper medical records.

Postoperative complications (POC) that developed in dogs and cats that underwent elective ovariohysterectomy, castration, and declaw at a veterinary teaching hospital were determined by examining the computerized abstracts of the medical records and by examining a random sample of the paper medical records. When the computerized abstracts were examined, POC were found to have occurred in 62 (6.1%) of 1,016 dogs. One dog died and 6 others developed major complications. Postoperative complications were found to have occurred in 38 (2.6%) of 1,459 cats. Two cats died and 1 was euthanatized. Four other cats developed major complications. Complete paper medical records for 218 dogs and cats were examined. When the paper medical records were examined, the proportions of dogs and cats with POC were 19.4% and 12.2%, respectively. These proportions were 4 to 7 times higher than when the computerized abstracts were the data source. Results of this study indicate that the frequency of clinically relevant POC of elective surgeries in dogs and cats is substantial. Examination of the computerized abstracts of medical records at this hospital allowed us to rapidly identify cases that could be included in the study but the frequency of POC would be significantly underestimated if paper records were not also assessed.