@article{louis_cerreta_griffioen_mehalick_lewbart_petritz_2020, title={Homologous whole blood transfusion for treatment of severe anemia in five Eastern box turtles (Terrapene carolina carolina)}, volume={35}, ISSN={["1931-6283"]}, DOI={10.1053/j.jepm.2020.05.013}, abstractNote={Abstract Background The Eastern box turtle (EBT) (Terrapene carolina carolina) is an iconic North American species and the state reptile of North Carolina. In recent decades its numbers have been threatened by various anthropogenic factors including habitat loss, vehicular trauma, domestic pet predation, climate change, and collection for both the legal and illegal pet trade. Since 1997 the NC State College of Veterinary Medicine Turtle Rescue Team (NC State TRT) has been treating and rehabilitating EBTs. In some cases, injury or disease result in extremely low packed cell volumes (PCVs). In such cases, and when an appropriate donor is available, a whole blood transfusion is performed. Methods Homologous whole blood transfusions were performed to treat severe anemia in four wild EBTs and one client-owned EBT. The PCV of each patient was measured at between 1% and 3% and the donor PCV's were over 15%. No more than 1% total body weight of blood was removed from each donor. This amounts to approximately 3.0 mL of whole blood from a donor. Prior to the transfusion, a macroagglutination cross-match was performed. Blood was either collected from the jugular vein or postoccipital sinus and administered via these same two routes with the exception of one case which received whole blood via the subcarapacial sinus. Results All wild turtles survived to release, and the client-owned turtle has survived at least 18 months post transfusion. None of the patients or donors were observed to have any reaction or problem with the procedure. Conclusions and case series relevance The jugular vein was the preferred route for both blood extraction and transfusion. A one-time homologous whole blood transfusion is likely a safe, emergency intervention to treat severe anemia in the EBT.}, number={C}, journal={JOURNAL OF EXOTIC PET MEDICINE}, author={Louis, Meghan M. and Cerreta, Anthony J. and Griffioen, John A. and Mehalick, Michelle L. and Lewbart, Gregory A. and Petritz, Olivia A.}, year={2020}, month={Oct}, pages={27–33} }
 @article{adamovicz_griffioen_cerreta_lewbart_allender_2019, title={TISSUE ENZYME ACTIVITIES IN FREE-LIVING EASTERN BOX TURTLES (TERRAPENE CAROLINA CAROLINA)}, volume={50}, ISSN={["1937-2825"]}, DOI={10.1638/2018-0079}, abstractNote={Abstract: Plasma biochemical enzymes are commonly assayed as part of a diagnostic evaluation for zoological species, but their interpretation is complicated by a lack of knowledge about tissue of origin in many reptiles. This study evaluated tissue specificity of six biochemical enzymes (alanine aminotransferase [ALT], aspartate aminotransferase [AST], alkaline phosphatase [ALP], creatine kinase [CK], gamma-glutamyl transferase [GGT], and glutamate dehydrogenase [GLDH]) in 10 tissues (skeletal muscle, cardiac muscle, lung, liver, gallbladder, pancreas, gastrointestinal tract, kidney, spleen, and reproductive tract) from 10 free-living eastern box turtles (Terrapene carolina carolina). CK activity was highest in skeletal muscle, cardiac muscle, and gastrointestinal tract; GLDH and ALT activities were highest in liver, kidney, and gallbladder; ALP and GGT activities were elevated in kidney and gastrointestinal tract; and AST was relatively nonspecific, with significantly higher activity in the cardiac muscle, liver, kidney, skeletal muscle, and gallbladder compared to other tissues (P < 0.05). These results serve as a first step toward improving clinical interpretation of plasma biochemistry panels in box turtles.}, number={1}, journal={JOURNAL OF ZOO AND WILDLIFE MEDICINE}, author={Adamovicz, Laura and Griffioen, John and Cerreta, Anthony and Lewbart, Gregory A. and Allender, Matthew C.}, year={2019}, month={Mar}, pages={45–54} }
 @article{lewbart_griffioen_savo_pablo munoz-perez_ortega_loyola_roberts_schaaf_steinberg_osegueda_et al._2018, title={Biochemistry and hematology parameters of the San Cristobal Galapagos tortoise (Chelonoidis chathamensis)}, volume={6}, ISSN={["2051-1434"]}, DOI={10.1093/conphys/coy004}, abstractNote={The San Cristóbal Galapagos tortoise, Chelonoidis chathamensis, is native to San Cristóbal, the most eastern and oldest island of the Galapagos Archipelago. Although numerous studies on the ecology, behavior and genetics of Galapagos tortoises have been published, little is known about the health status of these animals. Here we report blood values from clinically healthy tortoises.}, journal={CONSERVATION PHYSIOLOGY}, author={Lewbart, Gregory A. and Griffioen, John A. and Savo, Alison and Pablo Munoz-Perez, Juan and Ortega, Carlos and Loyola, Andrea and Roberts, Sarah and Schaaf, George and Steinberg, David and Osegueda, Steven B. and et al.}, year={2018}, month={Feb} }