Ureterocolonic anastomosis in a dog with transitional cell carcinoma of the urinary bladder

Ureterocolonic anastomosis and cystectomy were performed in a dog for treatment of transitional cell carcinoma of the urinary bladder. The dog remained an acceptable house pet for 10 months after surgery. However, the tumor recurred 10 months after surgery, and the dog was euthanatized. Our results indicated that the combination of ureterocolonic anastomosis and cystectomy can be an acceptable form of palliative treatment for transitional cell carcinoma of the urinary bladder in the dog.     

Rhabdomyosarcoma (botryoid sarcoma) of the urinary bladder in a Maltese

A urinary bladder tumour was diagnosed in a two-year-old female Maltese with haematuria and pollakiuria on the basis of ultrasonography and pneumocystography findings. The mass was resected, and the bladder was preserved at surgery. Histological and immunohistochemical examination confirmed the tumour to be a rhabdomyosarcoma, which has rarely been reported in small breeds of dog. There was no recurrence of the tumour at the original site in the urinary bladder two months later, when the dog died due to metastasis to the liver. This is believed to be the first report of bladder rhabdomyosarcoma in a Maltese.     

A technique for resection of invasive tumors involving the trigone area of the bladder in dogs: preliminary results in two dogs

Objective— To describe a surgical technique for resection of the entire bladder neck, including the trigone and proximal urethra in dogs with invasive tumors causing life-threatening urinary tract obstruction.
Study Design— Clinical case reports.
Animals— Dogs (n=2) with bladder tumors.
Methods— Circumferential excision of the bladder neck and proximal urethra with preservation of the neurovascular pedicles was performed to remove a rhabdomyosarcoma (dog 1) and a transitional cell carcinoma (dog 2) involving the trigone and bladder neck that were causing urinary tract obstruction. Reconstruction of the bladder and proximal urethra included bilateral ureteroneocystostomy. Adjuvant chemotherapy was administered postoperatively to both dogs.
Results— Postoperatively, dogs 1 and 2 were continent after 7 and 17 days, respectively, and regained normal urinary function after resolution of a transient pollakiuria. Dog 1 had no evidence of local or regional recurrence; however, a large solitary pulmonary metastatic lesion was diagnosed 8 months later. The dog was euthanatized despite a lack of clinical signs. Dog 2 had at least 1 metastatic lesion in the abdominal wall 6 months later and was euthanatized at 580 days because of renal failure.
Conclusion— En-bloc removal of the bladder neck and proximal urethra with preservation of the dorsal vascular and nervous pedicles, although a technically challenging procedure, can be performed without associated urinary incontinence or bladder wall necrosis.
Clinical Relevance— In dogs with invasive bladder tumors causing life-threatening urinary tract obstruction, resection of the bladder neck and proximal urethra should be considered as a promising surgical alternative to urinary diversion.     

Emphysematous cystitis and bladder trigone diverticulum in a dog

A 14-month-old, male German shepherd dog was evaluated for chronic, recurrent Escherichia coli urinary tract infection. An initial diagnosis of emphysematous cystitis was made, which resolved with appropriate antibacterial therapy. The urinary tract infection, however, did not resolve and on further investigation a bladder trigone diverticulum was evident, thought to be congenital in origin. This report describes the apparent ultrasonographic and radiological changes, and surgical repair of the diverticulum, and reviews the literature with regard to both congenital bladder trigone diverticulum and emphysematous cystitis. The former has never been documented in the dog and the latter is an unusual finding in a non-diabetic dog.     

A URINARY BLADDER FIBROSARCOMA IN A YOUNG DOG

A 14-month-old female dog, Gos d'Atura Catala was presented for a 7-month-history of reoccurring urinary tract infection. Using sonography, a focal multilobulated thickening of the urinary bladder wall was discovered. The solid mass was arising from the area of the ureteral papllDae and bulging into the lumen of the bladder neck. The wall of the urethra was uniformly thickened. These findings were not considered typical for a generalized urinary tract infection but more indicative of local severe inflammation, neoplasia or hyperplasia in the area of the ureteral openings. The thickening of the urethra was suggestive of urethritis or neoplastic infiltration. Signs of metastasis were not detected on the thoracic radiographs or in the remainder of the abdominal ultrasound examination. A surgical excision of the multilobulated mass was performed and histologic examination was conducted. A fibrosarcoma in the lamina propria of the urinary bladder wall was diagnosed. Because of reoccurence of hematuria and unresponsiveness to therapy the dog was euthanized. Postmortem examination confirmed the diagnosis of fiborsarcoma in the urinary bladder. Additionally, neoplastic infiltration of the urethral wall and metastasis in the lungs and liver were detected histopathologically.     

Ectopic ureter in a dog: extension from the kidney to the urinary bladder and to the urethra

An ectopic ureter extending to the urinary bladder and to the proximal portion of the urethra was diagnosed in a 6-month-old dog with urinary incontinence. The diagnosis was made by use of excretory urography. The kidney and ureter were removed. When urinary incontinence continued, positive-contrast cystography was performed. The ectopic ureter was found to bypass the bladder via a submucosal extension that emptied into the urethra.     

URINARY BLADDER MURAL HEMORRHAGE ASSOCIATED WITH SYSTEMIC BLEEDING DISORDERS IN THREE DOGS

The sonographic appearance of three dogs with diffuse bladder wall thickening due to mural hemorrhage is described. Two dogs were diagnosed with immune-mediated thrombocytopenia and the third dog with vitamin K antagonist toxicity. Urinary bladder wall thickening ranged from 5 to 12 mm on initial sonographic examination. In the two surviving dogs, the bladder wall returned to normal thickness. One dog, euthanatized for refractory hematuria, had submucosal hemorrhage in the urinary bladder at necropsy. Urinary wall thickening sonographically resolved at a rate of approximately 1 mm per day. Mural hemorrhage should be considered in patients with concurrent bleeding disorder and urinary bladder wall thickening.     

Bilateral ectopic ureters in a male dog with unilateral renal agenesis

A 1-year-old neutered male mixed-breed dog was evaluated because of signs of urinary incontinence. Retrograde positive contrast urethrocystography and excretory urography with pneumocystography revealed bilateral intramural ectopic ureters and absence of the right kidney. During abdominal exploratory surgery, only the left kidney was located. The left intramural ectopic ureter was repaired by neoureterostomy (creation of a new opening for the ureter to enable urine to empty into the bladder). The right ectopic ureter was ligated at its entrance into the urinary bladder serosa. Results of excretory urography (performed immediately after surgery and repeated 8 weeks later) revealed successful correction of the left intramural ectopic ureter. Twelve weeks after surgery, the dog remained continent. To the authors' knowledge, there are few reports of ectopic ureters in male dogs; furthermore, the urinary tract abnormalities detected concurrently in this dog are also unusual.     

Presumptive subcutaneous surgical transplantation of a urinary bladder transitional cell carcinoma in a dog

A urinary bladder mass in a 12-year-old spayed female West Highland White Terrier was diagnosed after exploratory surgery and biopsy as a transitional cell carcinoma. Four months later the dog presented with an ulcerated plaque-like cutaneous lesion at the previous surgical incision site; concurrent inguinal lymphadenopathy and recurrence of the urinary bladder mass were identified. Transitional cell carcinoma was diagnosed at all 3 sites. Although a definitive relationship cannot be established between the initial surgery for urinary bladder mass and the resultant subcutaneous lesion, surgical implantation should be considered as a source for the neoplastic cells.     

Primary prostatic haemangiosarcoma causing severe haematuria in a dog

A 10-year-old, entire, male, mixed-breed dog was presented for severe haematuria and stranguria. Ultrasound revealed a large intraluminal urinary bladder blood clot and a prostatic space-occupying lesion. Invasion of the lesion into the prostatic urethra was detected ultrasonographically during compression of the urinary bladder. Post-mortem examination revealed primary prostatic haemangiosarcoma infiltrating the urethra. Haemangiosarcoma should be considered as a rare cause of prostatic mass lesions, haematuria or lower urinary tract signs in dogs.     

Transitional cell carcinoma of the urinary bladder in a 14-year-old dog

A 14-year-old spayed female poodle-pekinese dog with a history of hematuria was tentatively diagnosed with non-radiopaque uroliths or urinary bladder neoplasia following temporary resolution of clinical signs after several rounds of antibiotic treatments, normal abdominal radiographs and no growth on urine culture. Abdominal ultrasound revealed a mass in the trigone area of the urinary bladder which was confirmed to be an invasive transitional cell carcinoma by histopathology following euthanasia.     

Transitional Cell Carcinoma of the Canine Urethra: Case Report and Review of the Literature

PRIMARY neoplasms of the lower urinary tract of the dog are relatively uncommon. These neoplasms occur most frequently in older dogs and, while they can originate anywhere along the urinary tract, the urinary bladder is by far the most common site. Reports in the literature indicate that neoplasms of the urinary bladder account for approximately 0.5% of all tumors in dogs.¹     

Modified "cup-patch" ileocystoplasty for urinary bladder reconstruction in a dog

Full-thickness wall necrosis involving 90 to 95% of the urinary bladder was diagnosed in a 6-month-old Golden Retriever 2 days after ovariohysterectomy. An isolated, vascularized segment of ileum denuded of mucosa was used to reconstruct the urinary bladder. Serial excretory urography over 1 year indicated gradual enlargement of the bladder, with development of a smooth mucosal surface. At 6 months after reconstructive surgery, the dog was voiding urine 2 to 3 times/d and was continent. Results of renal function testing, urinalysis, and bacteriologic culture of urine were all considered normal on follow-up examinations. The cause of bladder wall necrosis was never determined. Ileocystoplasty as described herein appears to be an effective urinary bladder reconstructive procedure in dogs whenever the bladder neck, proximal portion of the urethra, and their neurovascular supply can be spared.     

Primary malignant lymphoma of the urinary bladder in a dog: longterm remission following treatment with radiation and chemotherapy

Primary (extranodal) malignant lymphoma limited exclusively to the urinary bladder is an extremely rare disorder in both humans and animals and has to be differentiated from malignant lymphoma cases where a systemic (multicentric) lymphoma has spread to the bladder. We report a case of a 3-year old female spayed mixed breed dog presenting with gross haematuria and dysuria and diagnosed with a primary B-cell high-grade lymphoma of the urinary bladder without involvement of any other site. After treatment with a combination of hypofractionated external beam radiation and cytotoxic chemotherapy, rapid and complete remission of the tumor occurred. At present the dog is alive and has been in remission for 52 months.     

Leiomyosarcoma of urinary bladder in a Shih Tzu dog

A 10-year-old intact male Shih Tzu dog presented with hematuria. Double-contrast cystography revealed a polypoid filling defect at the apex of the urinary bladder. Ultrasonography revealed a heterogeneously hypoechoic intramural mass with minimal vascular flow beneath the submucosal layer. After partial cystectomy, a well-demarcated bladder leiomyosarcoma was diagnosed on histopathology. The patient was alive and well without any clinical signs, recurrence, or metastasis at the 29-month follow-up after the surgical removal of the bladder mass. Leiomyosarcoma should be considered as a differential diagnosis if mass-like lesions are observed in the urinary bladder, although this type of malignancy is rare in canines. Histopathological confirmation is important for predicting prognosis and determining further medical plans.     

Isolation of Nocardia asteroides from a dog with haemorrhagic cystitis

The clinical, clinicopathological, serial urinalysis, urinary bladder radiography and urine bacteriological culture results in a three-year-old male dog with haematuria of four days duration are presented. The dog had cystitis associated with suspected Nocardia asteroides infection. There was rapid resolution of clinical signs on institution of treatment with ampicillin.     

Is the Male Dog Comparable to Human? A Histological Study of the Muscle Systems of the Lower Urinary Tract

Because of their superficial anatomical resemblance, the male dog seems to be suitable for studying the physiologic and pathological alterations of the bladder neck of human males. The present study was carried out to compare and contrast the muscular anatomy of the male dog lower urinary tract with that of humans. The complete lower urinary tract, including the surrounding organs (bulb of penis, prostate, rectum and musculature of the pelvic floor) were removed from adult and newborn male dogs and histologically processed using serial section technique. Based on our own histological investigations, three-dimensional (3D)-models of the anatomy of the lower urinary tract were constructed to depict the corresponding structures and the differences between the species. The results of this study confirm that the lower urinary tract of the male dog bears some anatomical resemblance (musculus detrusor vesicae, prostate, prostatic and membranous urethra) to man. As with human males, the two parts of the musculus sphincter urethrae (glaber and transversostriatus) are evident in the canine bladder neck. Nevertheless, considerable differences in formation of individual muscles should be noted. In male dogs, no separate anatomic entity can be identified as vesical or internal sphincter. The individual course of the ventral and lateral longitudinal musculature and of the circularly arranged smooth musculature of the urethra is different to that of humans. Differences in the anatomy of individual muscles of the bladder neck in the male dog and man suggest that physiological interpretations of urethral functions obtained in one species cannot be attributed without qualification to the other.     

Relationship of upper and lower urinary tract infection and bacterial invasion of uroepithelium to antibody-coated bacteria test results in female dogs

Urinary tract infection was demonstrated in 12 female dogs via bacteriologic culture of a specimen of bladder urine collected by antepubic cystocentesis. Escherichia coli was isolated in pure culture from the urine of 9 dogs. Urine specimens from 2 dogs contained E coli and alpha-streptococci and from 1 dog contained Streptococcus zymogenes in pure culture. In 6 dogs, urinary tract infection was limited to the urinary bladder, whereas 6 dogs had unilateral or bilateral culture-positive renal pelvic urine as well (specimens collected by percutaneous nephropyelostomy). An antibody-coated bacteria (ACB) test was conducted on a portion of the bladder urine specimen from each dog, and the urinary tissues from these 12 dogs and from 6 healthy, noninfected female dogs were examined at necropsy. Tissues were given a subjective score based on the severity of the lesions seen microscopically. Histologic scores, bacterial cultural results, and ACB test results were examined for significance. A significant difference was found in the histologic scores between infected and noninfected dogs (P less than 0.025), but comparisons among histologic scores, cultural results, and ACB test results were not significant among infected dogs. The ACB test could neither be used to localize bacterial infection within the urinary tract nor could it be used to indicate the presence of bacterial invasion of the uroepithelium in dogs.     

Effect of flushing the vasa deferentia at the time of vasectomy on the rate of clearance of spermatozoa from the ejaculates of dogs and cats

Flushing the vasa deferentia (ductus deferentes) at the time of vasectomy reduced to zero the number of intact spermatozoa by postvasectomy day 6 in the dog and by postvasectomy day 7 in the cat and shortened the time from vasectomy to azoospermia in the dog, but not in the cat. The fluid used to flush the vasa deferentia was not eliminated through the penile urethra, but flowed into the urinary bladder, indicating that the least resistant pathway for the exit of vasal content in the anesthetized dog and cat is toward the urinary bladder. Both control and treated dogs and cats had spermatozoa in the urine obtained by cystocentesis immediately after ejaculation or ejaculation and flushing of the vasa deferentia. Flushing the vasa deferentia at the time of vasectomy is easy to do, safe, and can be used in clinical practice to decrease the time from vasectomy to the safe utilization of dogs and cats as teasers. The procedure has potential application to males of other species.     

Colonic seromuscular augmentation cystoplasty following subtotal cystectomy for treatment of bladder necrosis caused by bladder torsion in a dog

CASE DESCRIPTION: A 5-year-old Labrador Retriever was evaluated because of a 3-day history of lethargy, anorexia, vomiting, stranguria, and anuria after routine ovariohysterectomy. CLINICAL FINDINGS: On initial examination, signs of abdominal pain and enlargement of the urinary bladder were detected. Clinicopathologic abnormalities included leukocytosis, azotemia, and hyperkalemia. Radiography and surgical exploration of the abdomen revealed urinary bladder torsion at the level of the trigone; histologically, there was necrosis of 90% of the organ. TREATMENT AND OUTCOME: After excision of the necrotic wall of the urinary bladder (approx 0.5 cm cranial to the ureteral orifices), the remaining bladder stump was closed with a colonic seromuscular patch. Eleven weeks later, cystoscopy revealed an intramural ureteral stricture, for which treatment included a mucosal apposition neoureterocystostomy. Thirteen months after the first surgery, the dog developed pyelonephritis, which was successfully treated. By 3 months after subtotal cystectomy, the dog's urinary bladder was almost normal in size. Frequency of urination decreased from 3 to 4 urinations/h immediately after surgery to once every 3 hours after 2 months; approximately 4 months after the subtotal cystectomy, urination frequency was considered close to normal. CLINICAL RELEVANCE: Urinary bladder torsion is a surgical emergency in dogs. Ischemia of the urinary bladder wall may result from strangulation of the arterial and venous blood supply and from overdistension. Subtotal resection of the urinary bladder, preserving only the trigone area and the ureteral openings, and colonic seromuscular augmentation can be used to successfully treat urinary bladder torsion in dogs.