WHITE BLOOD COUNT AS A 2-1 BETAMETHASONE DISSODIC FOSFHATE AND DEXAMETHASONE DISSODIC FOSPHATE/ACETATE MONITOR IN SWINE CORNEA TRANSPLANTED DOGS

Ten mixed breed dogs, with a 10 kg average weight were selected at Centro de Zoonoses de Goiânia. After being examined and considered healthy, the dogs were enumerated from 11 to 20 on their collars. Each animal had swine cornea implanted into the left eye. The swine cornea was obtained at Casa de Banha Caçula, a slaughterhouse, and conserved in a humid chamber during a maximum 6 hour period. Each animal received 4 mg dissodic fosphate/acetate dexamethasone IM and was instilled one drop of gentamycin sulphate/betametbasone dissodic fosphate, maintaining ocular medication 4 times/day and intramuscular medication once a week until euthanasia. Each animal had blood samples collected on day 0, before surgery, and on day 14 and 28 to analyse white blood count as a monitor of corticosteroids, imunocellular supressor drugs. From ten blood samples collected on day 0, 80% didn't present any alterations, 10% presented leukocytosis with neutrophilia and 10% weren't submitted to analysis. Due to the fact that three animals had been euthanized between days 14 and 21, these samples (40%), were analyzed and compared with these collected on day 0. Five animals (50%) had their samples examined on day 28. On both days 14 and 28, there were 100% neutrophilia, 100% eosinophilia and 44.4% lymphocytopenia, indicating imunocellular supression. KEY-WORDS: Corticosteroids; xenotransplants; cornea; canine; swine.