Emergency patients in shock receive an immediate infusion with Ringer-Lactate and Vitamin B complex for volume substitution. An infusion is contraindicated in the presence of pulmonary oedema; here Furosemide has proven to be excellently effective and well tolerated.
The injection of corticosteroids ("Solu-Decortin H10") should be considered very carefully and has proven effective in birds that are delivered shortly after their accident without delay. The severe immunosuppression caused by corticosteroids is expressly pointed out; they should only be used once, in exceptional cases for a maximum of three consecutive days.
Covering the shock patient with systemic antibiotics should be critically weighed in swifts due to the risk of aspergillosis, as the already weakened organism must then additionally be burdened by an antifungal. Not every accident bird that has suffered a collision needs the entire range of emergency medication treatment. Standard recipes that cover everything as a precaution and are administered to every shock patient without exception may cause more harm than good through "over medicating".
Therefore, based on careful clinical examination, the most sensible combination of medications must be considered and applied individually for each case. In some cases, less is more. For example, lukewarm black coffee has repeatedly proven to be an excellent home remedy for severely weakened, circulatory-depressive patients instead of the common circulatory stimulants. However, an infusion with roborants must always be given beforehand.
| Active Ingredient | Dosage | Trade Name | Manufacturer |
|---|---|---|---|
| Etilefrine | 1 mg/kg i.m. | Effortril | Boehringer Ingelheim |
| Doxapram | 10 mg/kg i.m. | Dopram-V | Albrecht |
| Dimethyl- butyramide |
dropwise o.o. | Respirot | Ciba |
| k-Strophanthin | dropwise p.o. 2-4 weeks |
k-Strophanthin | Intervet |
| Prednisolone | 5 mg/kg i.m. SID max. 3d |
Solu-Decortin H10 | Merck |
| Furosemide | 1 mg/kg i.m. | Lasix, "Dimazon" | Hoechst Roussel |
| Caffeine | dropwise p.o. | Cronat Gold | Jacobs |