Successful surgical management of abdominal abscessation secondary to Strongylus edentatus migration

This report describes the successful surgical management of abdominal abscessation secondary to Strongylus edentatus migration. Abdominal abscesses are a relatively common source of recurrent fever in the horse and are primarily managed with long‐term antimicrobial administration. However, identification of the definitive cause, extent of the abscesses and successful resolution in this case were not possible without an exploratory celiotomy to facilitate surgical resection.     

The effect of temperature before or after inoculation with Phoma exigua var. foveata on the development of gangrene in potato tubers

Potato tubers of five cultivais were incubated at five temperatures between 2 and 20°C for 1 month and then inoculated with Phoma exigua var. foveata and stored at 5°C. Larger rots usually developed on tubers previously incubated at the higher temperatures but cultivar differences were greatest where tubers had been incubated at 2°C. In another experiment, rot size was related to the duration of incubation at 20°C before inoculation.
In a series of experiments, tubers were stored at different temperatures after inoculation; other factors (e.g. wound type or r.h.) were also investigated in some of these. Combining the results of all experiments a linear decrease of % wounds infected (logit transformation) with storage temperature was demonstrated. The size of rots was not simply related to temperature, but tended to increase over the range 2–10°C and then stabilized or declined at higher temperatures. Relative humidity treatments of 75% v. 95% did not consistently affect either the incidence of rotting or rot size. The other factors investigated did not usually interact significantly with temperature.
The relevance of the results for resistance testing is discussed and a simple equation relating disease incidence to inoculum levels, type of damage and temperature is proposed.     

Ovarian Follicular Dynamics of five-eighths Girolando Cows

The objective of this study was to examine the follicular dynamics of five-eighths Girolando cows by observing the number of follicular development waves, days of emergence of those waves, diameters of the dominant and largest subordinate follicles and the processes of follicular selection and dominance. Ovarian follicle dynamics were monitored for 24 oestrous cycles in 12 cows, of 4 to 10 years of age, presenting regular oestrous cycles and with body scores between 3 and 4. Ovaries were observed daily for two consecutive oestrous cycles and follicles were measured with ultrasonographic equipment. The dominant follicle was considered to be that which presented a diameter ≥ 10 mm for three consecutive days and on the day of wave emergence, when a group of follicles measuring 3–5 mm in diameter would appear. Of the 24 cycles monitored, 62.5% presented two waves of follicular development and 37.5% presented three waves. The cycles presenting two waves had an average duration of 20 days, with the emergence of the waves on days 1 and 9, whereas the cycles presenting three waves had an average duration of 22 days, with emergences on days 1, 10 and 16. For cycles with two waves, both the first and second dominant follicles reached an average size of 13.8 mm, with the first regressing on day 10 and the second ovulating around day 20. For cycles with three waves, the dominant follicles of the first and second waves reached maximum diameters of 11.8 and 12 mm, respectively, with the first regressing on day 11 and the second regressing on day 17. The third dominant follicle reached a maximum diameter of 12.4 mm on day 20, and ovulated on day 22. These results lead to the conclusion that the follicular dynamics of five-eighths Girolando cows are characterized by the presence of two to three waves of follicular growth.     

ULTRASONOGRAPHIC APPEARANCE OF THE INTRAVASCULAR TRANSIT OF AGITATED SALINE IN NORMAL DOGS FOLLOWING ULTRASOUND GUIDED PERCUTANEOUS SPLENIC INJECTION

Portosystemic shunts (PSSs) allow portal blood to bypass the liver and enter the systemic circulation. Definitive diagnosis requires surgical identification, positive contrast portography, ultrasonography, or scintigraphy. This study was designed as a preliminary step to developing an alternative/adjuvant protocol to these imaging modalities. The main goals were to establish a technique for ultrasound‐guided percutaneous trans‐splenic injection of agitated saline, to evaluate the feasibility of performing the test to explore the postsplenic portal vasculature highlighted by the microbubbles, and to ascertain whether agitated saline microbubbles cross the sinusoidal barrier. Agitated saline was injected into the spleen of 20 healthy sedated dogs under sonographic guidance. The transducer was then repositioned to visualize the portal vein, the caudal vena cava, and the right atrium through different acoustic windows. Satisfactory results were achieved in all dogs. The microbubbles were visualized in all dogs as small intense echo signals within the portal vein at the level of the porta hepatis immediately after injection. In 18 out of 20 dogs, the echogenic signal of the microbubbles disappeared immediately once within the hepatic parenchyma, whereas in two dogs, the echoes from the microbubbles lasted for several seconds within the intrahepatic portal vasculature. The absence of microbubbles beyond the sinusoidal barrier in all of the healthy dogs included in this study makes trans‐splenic injection of agitated saline a candidate as an adjuvant technique for the diagnosis of PSS, being easy to perform and repeat, as well as safe and technically feasible.     

Inherited epidermal dysplasia in Holstein-Friesian calves

Inherited epidermal dysplasia (IED), formerly called baldy calf syndrome, is a lethal disease of calves of Holstein-Friesian ancestry. The disease causes progressive illthrift and skin, horn and hoof lesions, which can be confused with inherited zinc deficiency. The clinicopathological features and ancestry of 10 affected calves in Gippsland, Victoria are described.     

COMPARISON BETWEEN NONCONTRAST COMPUTED TOMOGRAPHY AND MAGNETIC RESONANCE IMAGING FOR DETECTION AND CHARACTERIZATION OF THORACOLUMBAR MYELOPATHY CAUSED BY INTERVERTEBRAL DISK HERNIATION IN DOGS

Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and computed tomography (CT) are commonly used to evaluate dogs with thoracolumbar myelopathy; however, relative diagnostic sensitivities for these two modalities have not been previously reported. The purpose of this prospective study was to compare diagnostic sensitivity and observer agreement for MRI and CT in a group of dogs with thoracolumbar myelopathy due to surgically confirmed intervertebral disk herniation (IVDH). All included dogs had magnetic resonance (MR) imaging followed by noncontrast CT using standardized protocols. Three experienced observers interpreted each imaging study independently without knowledge of clinical or surgical findings. The operating surgeon was aware of MR findings but not CT findings at the time surgical findings were recorded. Forty‐four dogs met the inclusion criteria. The sensitivity of CT was 88.6% (79.5%–94.2%) and of MR was 98.5% (95% confidence interval, 94.1%–99.7%) for diagnosis of intervertebral disk herniation. Specificity was not calculated, as all dogs had IVDH at surgery. Magnetic resonance imaging was more accurate than CT for identifying the site of intervertebral disk herniation‐associated spinal cord compression and differentiating disk extrusion vs. protrusion. Computed tomography was less accurate for lesion localization in per acute cases, as well as for chondrodystrophic, female, older and smaller (<7 kg) dogs. Inter‐rater agreement was good for lesion lateralization for both MR and CT (κ = 0.687, 95% CI = 0.552, 0.822, P = 0.002, and κ = 0.692, 95% CI = 0.542, 0.842, P = 0.003). Findings from the current study indicated that MR imaging was more sensitive and accurate than noncontrast CT for diagnosis and characterization of thoracolumbar myelopathy due to IVDH in dogs.     

Nutrient solution concentration and collection time in phytomass production,content, yield and chemical composition of essential oil of rosemary

Rosmarinus officinalis L. (rosemary), is a medicinal and aromatic species used in the cosmetics and food processing industries. The present study aimed to evaluate the biomass production, content, yield and chemical composition of the essential oil of rosemary in cultivation out of soil with different concentrations of nutrient solution in both harvests. The cultivation of rosemary was conducted in a protected system off the ground, with concentrations of nutrient solutions of 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5 dS.m^?1 for fertigation with collections of leaves 100 and 160 days after planting. Nutrient solution concentration influences phytomass production and the content and yield of essential oil of rosemary, though not its chemical composition. The collection time does not interfere in the content of essential oil; however, does interfere in the chemical composition; the production of phytomass and the yield of oil per plant are higher in collections at 160 days after planting.     

THE USE OF SMALL FIELD‐OF‐VIEW 3 TESLA MAGNETIC RESONANCE IMAGING FOR IDENTIFICATION OF ARTICULAR CARTILAGE DEFECTS IN THE CANINE STIFLE: AN EX VIVO CADAVERIC STUDY

Noninvasive identification of canine articular cartilage injuries is challenging. The objective of this prospective, cadaveric, diagnostic accuracy study was to determine if small field‐of‐view, three tesla magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) was an accurate method for identifying experimentally induced cartilage defects in canine stifle joints. Forty‐two canine cadaveric stifles (n = 6/group) were treated with sham control, 0.5, 1.0, or 3.0 mm deep defects in the medial or lateral femoral condyle. Proton density‐weighted, T1‐weighted, fast‐low angle shot, and T2 maps were generated in dorsal and sagittal planes. Defect location and size were independently determined by two evaluators and compared to histologic measurements. Accuracy of MRI was determined using concordance correlation coefficients. Defects were identified correctly in 98.8% (Evaluator 1) and 98.2% (Evaluator 2) of joints. Concordance correlation coefficients between MRI and histopathology were greater for defect depth (Evaluator 1: 0.68–0.84; Evaluator 2: 0.76–0.83) compared to width (Evaluator 1: 0.30–0.54; Evaluator 2: 0.48–0.68). However, MRI overestimated defect depth (histopathology: 1.65 ± 0.94 mm; Evaluator 1, range of means: 2.07–2.38 mm; Evaluator 2, range of means: 2–2.2 mm) and width (histopathology: 6.98 ± 1.32 mm; Evaluator 1, range of means: 8.33–8.8 mm; Evaluator 2, range of means: 6.64–7.16 mm). Using the paired t‐test, the mean T2 relaxation time of cartilage defects was significantly greater than the mean T2 relaxation time of adjacent normal cartilage for both evaluators (P < 0.0001). Findings indicated that MRI is an accurate method for identifying cartilage defects in the cadaveric canine stifle. Additional studies are needed to determine the in vivo accuracy of this method.