Shock, emergency condition in animals

Shock is the end stage or final common path of many diseases. We commonly think that shock is an event that follows severe hemorrhage or endotoxemia and causes tachycardia, tachypnea, hypotension, depression, stupor, coma, dehydration and abnormal mucous membranes. These clinical signs may be associated with shock and are easily recognized, but they are common to many other condition. The clinical signs of shock reflect hemodynamic responses that are the result of exquisitely controlled neurohumoral mechanisms triggered by depletion of effective circulating volume. Shock can be defined as an imbalance between oxygen delivery and oxygen consumption. Because oxygen is not stored in tissues, the rate of oxygen uptake from the capillaries must match the metabolic requirements of the tissues for aerobic metabolism to continue. When metabolic demand for oxygen exceeds the rate of oxygen uptake by the tissues, anaerobic metabolism ensues, resulting in decreased energy production. When cell dysoxia produces a measurable change in organ function, the condition is commonly known as shock. If it left untreated, progressive tissue hypoxia leads to altered cellular metabolism, cell death, organ failure, and, ultimately, the death of the animal.