Distracted cervical spinal fusion for management of caudal cervical spondylomyelopathy in large-breed dogs

Using an autogenous bone graft (obtained from the iliac crest), 4-mm cancellous bone screws, and polymethylmethacrylate, a distracted cervical spinal fusion technique was performed on 10 dogs with myelographic evidence of caudal cervical spondylomyelopathy. All dogs had evidence of dynamic soft tissue spinal cord compression, as indicated by flexion, extension, and traction myelographic views. Of the 10 dogs, 4 previously had undergone surgery by use of ventral slot or cervical disk fenestration techniques, and their neurologic status had deteriorated after the original surgery. Preoperative neurologic status of the 10 dogs included nonambulatory tetraparesis (n = 5), severe ataxia with conscious proprioceptive deficits (n = 2), and mild ambulatory ataxia with conscious proprioceptive deficits (n = 3). Five dogs had signs of various degrees of cervical pain. Clinical improvement was observed in 8 of 10 dogs--either improved neurologic status or elimination of cervical pain. Implant loosening developed in 3 dogs; 2 of them were euthanatized because of lack of neurologic improvement. Radiographic evidence of bony cervical fusion was observed during a 9- to 24-week period in 6 of the 8 surviving dogs. The distracted cervical fusion technique appears to be a valid surgical procedure to manage cervical spondylomyelopathy in those dogs in which the lesions are limited to one cervical intervertebral disk space.     

Radiological assessment of the cervical spine of the dobermann with reference to cervical spondylo-myelopathy

Plain and myelographic studies were carried out on 28 dobermanns clinically affected with cervical spondylomyelopathy. The radiographic appearance identified was compared with that found in studies of 24 similar sized dogs of other breeds, and also 115 mature dobermanns clinically normal at presentation. Twenty-eight of these clinically normal dobermanns were considered to possess radiographic changes similar to those identified in the affected animals. During the next five years 20 (71-8 per cent) of the animals developed signs of cervical spondylomyelopathy. The remaining 87 dobermanns are considered by their owners to have remained normal. It is suggested that careful radiographic assessment offers a real basis for the identification of potential ‘wobblers’. It also offers a means of identifying sound breeding stock as one method of reducing the incidence of an increasingly serious multifactorial disease.     

Oxytocin-induced cervical dilation and cervical manipulation in sheep: effects on laparoscopic artificial insemination

The difficulty of cervical penetration severely limits the use of transcervical AI (TAI) in sheep, and trauma from cervical manipulation (CM) may reduce fertility after TAI. We investigated the effects of cervical dilation using exogenous oxytocin (OT) to facilitate TAI and its effects on reproductive variables after laparoscopic AI (LAI). Estrus was synchronized by inserting pessaries impregnated with 6alpha-methyl-17alpha-hydroxyprogesterone acetate (60 mg) for 12 d. In Exp. 1, we determined whether OT and CM before LAI affected the interval from pessary removal to ovulation and fertilization rate. Crossbred ewes (n = 16) were assigned to 1) saline-CM or 2) OT-CM. In Exp. 2, effects of OT and CM on lambing rates were evaluated with white-faced ewes (n = 220) in a 2 x 2 factorial experiment: 1) saline-sham CM; 2) saline-CM; 3) OT-sham CM; and 4) OT-CM. In both studies, eCG (400 IU i.m.) was injected at pessary removal, and LAI was performed 48 to 52 h later. In Exp. 1, ewes received i.v. either 400 USP units of OT or 20 mL of saline at 30 to 60 min before LAI, and CM was administered as for TAI. Beginning 32 h after pessary removal and continuing at 8-h intervals, ovaries were examined with ultrasonography to estimate time of ovulation. Treatment in Exp. 1 did not affect combined ovum/embryo recovery rate (69%), but OT-CM decreased fertilization rate (47 vs 59%; P < 0.05). The OT tended to reduce the interval to ovulation (OT, 59 h vs saline, 66 h; P < 0.06). The OT x CM interaction in Exp. 1 was not significant. For Exp. 2, approximately 25 min before sham CM or CM, 200 USP units of OT or 10 mL of saline was injected i.v. The LAI was performed immediately after sham CM or CM. At 10 to 12 d after AI in Exp. 2, ewes were mated with Suffolk rams. Blood was collected between 24 and 26 d after AI for pregnancy-specific protein B (PSPB) RIA. The PSPB pregnancy and lambing rates were both 62% in saline-sham controls. The CM did not affect pregnancy (69%) or lambing rate (64%). The OT treatment decreased (P < 0.05) PSPB pregnancy (59%) and lambing rates (56%) in OT-sham ewes and pregnancy and lambing rates in CM ewes (both 43%). Neither CM nor OT before LAI affected lambing rates to next estrus, indicating no long-term damage to the cervix or uterus. In summary, CM did not affect fertility after LAI, but OT decreased lambing rate independent of CM. If OT will not be usable for TAI, it may still be a tool for training TAI personnel.     

Brucella-associated cervical bursitis in cattle

Bovine brucellosis poses a risk to human health and causes serious economic losses for the animal industry. This report describes the use of different diagnostic methods for the diagnosis of brucellosis in cattle affected by cervical bursitis from a slaughterhouse located in São Luís, Maranhão, Brazil. Serum samples from a total of 47 cattle with bursitis were collected and submitted to the Rose Bengal Test (RBT), and RBT-positive samples were further confirmed by the 2-mercaptoethanol (2-ME) assay. RBT indicated 85.1% (40/47) of positive samples, from which 78.7% (37/47) were confirmed by 2-ME. Immunohistochemistry detected Brucella spp. in 34.0% (16/47) of tissues with bursitis. PCR and/or bacterial isolation demonstrated that 63.8% (30/47) of samples were positive and morphologically compatible with Brucella sp. All colonies suggestive of Brucella sp. were confirmed by PCR. Isolates were further characterized by PCR Multiplex AMOS-ENHANCED, which indicated that the isolates corresponded to biovar 1, 2, 4 (43.33%). This study evidences an association between cervical bursitis and Brucella spp. infection in cattle, and that different biovars of Brucella circulate in bovine herds in Maranhão.

     

The incidence of cervical dystocia and disorders of cervical involution in the post partum cow

The aim of this study was to obtain information on the frequency of cervical dystocia and involution disorders of the canalis cervicalis after difficult dystocia and to characterise factors possibly influencing these pathological conditions. Therefore 317 difficult births in the cow (extraction: 123; foetotomy: 82; caesarean section: 112) and the involution of the cervical canal were documented during the first ten days post partum. In total a cervical dystocia could be diagnosed 53 times (16.7% related to the total number of births). This kind of birth disorder is regularly followed by a caesarean section (p < 0.001). Animals who show a narrowness in the cervix were older than the cows without cervical dystocia (p < 0.05). The same correlation could be detected for the number of births. Animals with delivery problems associated with the cervix had already given birth to more calves than cows who were not affected by cervical disorders (p < 0.01). 58 cows developed a disorder of the cervical involution (18.3% related to the total number of deliveries). This puerperal disorder can be frequently observed after foetotomy (p < 0.001). A correlation between the incidence of disorders of cervical involution and the age or the parity of the animals could not be detected. In the same way, cows with a diagnosis of a cervical dystocia did not develop more frequently disorders of cervical involution than animals who showed a physiological dilation of the cervical canal intra partum.     

MRI features of cervical articular process degenerative joint disease in Great Dane dogs with cervical spondylomyelopathy

Cervical spondylomyelopathy or Wobbler syndrome commonly affects the cervical vertebral column of Great Dane dogs. Degenerative changes affecting the articular process joints are a frequent finding in these patients; however, the correlation between these changes and other features of cervical spondylomyelopathy are uncertain. We described and graded the degenerative changes evident in the cervical articular process joints from 13 Great Danes dogs with cervical spondylomyelopathy using MR imaging, and evaluated the relationship between individual features of cervical articular process joint degeneration and the presence of spinal cord compression, vertebral foraminal stenosis, intramedullary spinal cord changes, and intervertebral disc degenerative changes. Degenerative changes affecting the articular process joints were common, with only 13 of 94 (14%) having no degenerative changes. The most severe changes were evident between C4-C5 and C7-T1 intervertebral spaces. Reduction or loss of the hyperintense synovial fluid signal on T2-weighted MR images was the most frequent feature associated with articular process joint degenerative changes. Degenerative changes of the articular process joints affecting the synovial fluid or articular surface, or causing lateral hypertrophic tissue, were positively correlated with lateral spinal cord compression and vertebral foraminal stenosis. Dorsal hypertrophic tissue was positively correlated with dorsal spinal cord compression. Disc-associated spinal cord compression was recognized less frequently.     

Paratracheal cervical mass in a dog

A 14-year-old female Welsh Terrier was presented for evaluation of multiple skin masses. Two of them were diagnosed as a follicular (epidermal) cyst and a sebaceous epithelioma by cytology and histopathology. The third mass was located in the subcutis adjacent to the cervical trachea. Clinical findings, thoracic radiography, and laboratory results were otherwise unremarkable. Cytologically, the cervical mass was characterized by the presence of round to polygonal cells with distinct cell borders, mild to moderate anisocytosis, round to oval eccentric nuclei with prominent nucleoli, and a variable amount of finely granular, eosinophilic cytoplasm. Differential diagnoses included endocrine/neuroendocrine tumors such as thyroid adenocarcinoma, medullary thyroid carcinoma, carotid body chemodectoma, and parathyroid carcinoma. The mass was removed surgically and submitted for histopathologic and immunohistochemical examination. Histologically, the mass was composed of rows and nests of densely packed cells separated by thin fibrovascular stroma. Neoplastic cells had moderate to large amounts of pale eosinophilic dusty or finely vacuolated cytoplasm and round to oval nuclei with finely dispersed chromatin and 1 or 2 small nucleoli. On immunohistochemistry, neoplastic cells were positive for chromogranin A, calcitonin, and neuron-specific enolase, and were negative for cytokeratin and thyroglobulin. The final diagnosis was medullary thyroid carcinoma, an uncommon endocrine tumor of dogs that has cytologic and histopathologic features similar to other endocrine and neuroendocrine tumors. Immunohistochemistry or immunocytochemistry should be performed to differentiate medullary thyroid carcinoma from other endocrine/neuroendocrine tumors of dogs.     

Ectopic cervical thymic carcinoma in a dog

A 10-year-old male German shepherd dog was referred for evaluation of a cranial cervical mass causing progressively worsening respiratory distress. A fine-needle aspirate of the mass was obtained and the cytology results were compatible with a carcinoma. The dog underwent chemotherapy without clinical improvement and was ultimately euthanased because of clinical deterioration. At post-mortem examination, an irregular multi-lobated mass in the cranial cervical region was observed causing ventro-lateral tracheal deviation. Histopathology and immunohistochemistry revealed a mixed population of CD3 lymphocytes and macrophages in an exuberant fibrous stroma, associated with dispersed cytokeratin-positive epithelial cells with marked eosinophilic cytoplasm. Some of the epithelial cells were arranged in concentric clusters that were interpreted as Hassall's corpuscles. Histopathological examination of the thyroid gland revealed several neoplastic emboli composed of epithelial cells similar to those observed in the cervical mass. To the authors' knowledge, this is the first report of an ectopic cervical thymic carcinoma in a dog.     

Treatment of cervical oesophageal rupture in horses

Oesophageal rupture in horses has only been previously described in detail in isolated case reports. The objectives of this study were to describe the clinical findings, specific treatment and outcome of oesophageal rupture in horses. Medical records of horses diagnosed with oesophageal rupture between 1994–2008 were reviewed. Clinical findings, treatment and outcome were recorded. Seven horses with cervical oesophageal perforations were included in the study. Two horses were subjected to euthanasia without treatment and 5 were treated surgically. Treatment involved a fasciotomy of the cervical musculature and oesophageal tube placement. Three of 5 horses survived long‐term (>one year). Our study showed that surgical treatment of cervical oesophageal rupture involving fasciotomy and oesophagostomy tube placement can be successful with 3/5 of treated horses surviving more than one year.     

Tetraparesis following cervical disk fenestration in two dogs

Two dogs were nonambulatory and tetraparetic following cervical disk fenestration used as the treatment for cervical disk disease. Severe pain and cervical muscle fasiculation also were evident. The site of disk extrusion was localized radiographically, and cervical ventral decompression was used to remove the disk material. Recovery in both cases was complete.