Ectopic hepatocellular carcinoma in a dog

CASE HISTORY: A 14-year-old neutered male Bearded Collie was presented with a history of recurrent, intermittent urinary incontinence of 7 years duration.

CLINICAL FINDINGS: A large, firm, non-painful mass was found in the mid-abdominal region on palpation. Ultrasonography of the mass revealed a compartmentalised structure with mixed echogenicity, and which did not appear to be associated with any of the abdominal organs. Ultrasound-guided fine needle aspirates contained several clusters of epithelial cells with cytological features of hepatocytes. At exploratory laparotomy, the mass was found in the gastrosplenic ligament within the greater omentum.

PATHOLOGICAL FINDINGS AND DIAGNOSIS: Histopathologically, the mass consisted of sheets of hepatocytes, but without the characteristic hepatic architecture. The cells showed moderate variation in nuclear size and were sometimes binucle- ate. A diagnosis of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) in the mesentery was made.

CLINICAL RELEVANCE: The presence of ectopic hepatic tissue has been reported rarely in man and cats, but not in the dog. Neoplastic transformation of ectopic hepatic tissue is seen in man. This is the first report of the presentation, clinical findings and treatment of a dog with ectopic HCC.     

Equine pituitary pars intermedia dysfunction: current understanding and recommendations from the Australian and New Zealand Equine Endocrine Group

The purpose of this article is to provide a review of the current knowledge and opinions about the epidemiology, clinical findings (including sequelae), diagnosis, treatment and monitoring of equine pituitary pars intermedia dysfunction, particularly in the Australian context. This information and the recommendations provided will assist practitioners in making informed decisions regarding the diagnosis and management of this disorder.     

A survey of northern Victorian dairy farmers to investigate dairy calf management: colostrum feeding and management

Objectives

To describe colostrum management practices carried out in northern Victorian dairy herds and to identify weaknesses in these areas that may affect calf health and welfare by comparing the results with the current industry recommendations

Methods

A questionnaire to obtain information about colostrum management and calf‐rearing practices was sent to commercial dairy farming clients of Rochester Veterinary Practice between June and September 2013. The questionnaire consisted of a general herd overview and colostrum harvesting practices.

Results

The response rate was 39% (58/150). Many dairy producers were not meeting the current industry recommendations in the following areas: (1) time of removal calf from the dam, (2) relying on calf suckling colostrum from the dam to achieve adequate passive transfer, (3) failing to supplement calves with colostrum, (4) feeding inadequate volumes of colostrum, (5) delayed colostrum harvesting, (6) pooling of colostrum, (7) failing to objectively assess colostrum quality or relying on visual assessment and (8) storing colostrum for a prolonged periods of time at ambient temperatures.

Conclusion

The results from this survey highlight the need for greater awareness of industry standards for colostrum management and feeding hygiene.

     

Prevalences of feline leukaemia virus and feline immunodeficiency virus infections in cats in Sydney

Objective To determine prevalences of feline leukaemia virus (FeLV) and feline immunodeficiency virus (FIV) infections in ‘healthy’ cats that, through acute misadventure or other circumstance, were presented to veterinary practitioners. Prevalences of FeLV and FIV in this population were compared to those in a population of predominantly sick cats. Design and procedures Serum specimens were obtained over a 2-year period from 200 cats oldeer than 1 year of age presented to veterinary clinics for routine procedures, including cat fight injuries or abscesses, vehicular trauma, neutering, dental scaling, vaccination, grooming or boarding. An additional 894 sera were obtained over approximately the same period from specimens submitted by veterinarians to a private clinical pathology laboratory, mainly from sick cats suspected of having immune dysfunction, but including some sera from healthy cats being screened prior to FeLV vaccination. FIV antibody and FeLV antigen were detected in samples using commercial enzyme immunoassays. Results Amongst 200 ‘healthy’ cats, the prevalence of FeLV infection was 0 to 2%, and the prevalence of FIV was 6.5 to 7.5%, depending on the stringency of the criteria used to define positivity. FIV infection was significantly more prevalent in cats which resided in an inner city environment (P = 0.013). Of the 894 serum specimens submitted to the laboratory by practitioners, 11/761 (1.4%) were FeLV positive, while 148/711 (20.8%) were FIV positive. The prevalence of FIV was significantly higher in these predominantly ‘sick’ cats than in cats seen for routine veterinary procedures (P < 0.00001), while there was no difference in the prevalence of FeLV (P = 0.75) Conclusions The prevalence of FeLV and FIV in healthy cats may have been substantially overestimated in some previous Australian surveys. FeLV infection would appear to be a rare cause of disease in Australian cats. The higher prevalence of FIV positivity in sick as opposed to healthy cats infers that FIV infection contributes to the development of disease.     

Caecal disease in equids

Objective To review the breed, age, gender, clinical and laboratory findings, treatment and outcome of horses with caecal disease presented to a referral centre. Design Retrospective study of 96 cases. Procedure The breed, age, and gender of the study population were compared with the corresponding hospital population for the same period. The means (± SD) for clinical and laboratory findings were recorded for each caecal disorder. Treatment was categorised as medical or surgical, and outcome was recorded. Results Caecal diseases included impaction (40% of total cases), rupture associated with concurrent unrelated disease (13%), rupture with parturition (9%), rupture with no associated disease (5%), infarction (11%), torsion (9%), abscess or adhesion (7%), tumour (3%), and miscellaneous conditions (3%). The breed or gender of affected horses did not differ from the hospital population, although horses > 15 years were more frequently represented (P < 0.05). This age group was specifically more predisposed to caecal impaction (P < 0.05), as were Arabian, Morgan, and Appaloosa breeds (P < 0.05). In horses with caecal impaction transrectal examination was the most useful diagnostic procedure; 90% of affected horses treated medically were discharged while horses treated by typhlotomy alone, or typhlotomy and blind end ileocolostomy, had survival rates to discharge of 71% and 86%, respectively. Horses with caecal rupture associated with concurrent un-related disease showed no signs of impending rupture; all were receiving phenylbutazone, all were euthanased, and 50% had caecal ulceration at necropsy. Of horses with caecal rupture with parturition 56% had prior dystocia; in two-thirds the site of rupture was the ileocaecal junction and all were euthanased. Horses with caecal rupture with no associated disease died or were euthanased; rupture was idiopathic. Horses with caecal infarction usually had signs of abdominal pain and abdominal fluid changes consistent with peritonitis; transrectal examination was nonspecific, and typhlectomy was successful in seven of eight horses. Horses with caecal torsion had signs of severe, acute abdominal pain and typhlectomy was successful in three of five horses. Diagnosis of caecal adhesion or abscess was assisted by transrectal palpation in two of seven horses and surgical treatment was successful in two of five horses. A caecal tumour was diagnosed in three horses aged 20 years or older that presented with chronic weight loss. Other caecal diseases were uncommon. Conclusion Caecal disease is uncommon in equids but some specific features of the history and physical findings can alert the veterinarian to the possibility of caecal involvement in horses with gastrointestinal dysfunction. Medical or surgical therapy can be effective in horses where caecal rupture has not occurred.     

Role of Tumour Necrosis Factor α in Stimulation of Prostaglandins F2α and E2 Release by Cultured Porcine Endometrial Cells

The present studies were undertaken to examine the effect of tumour necrosis factor (TNF) alpha on prostaglandins (PGs) F(2alpha) and E(2) release by cultured porcine endometrial cells harvested on days 13-16 after oestrus in comparison to stimulation with oxytocin (OT) and luteinizing hormone (LH). A time-dependent effect of TNFalpha (10 ng/ml) on PGF(2alpha) release was observed in stromal and luminal epithelial cells. Moreover, TNFalpha increased PGF(2alpha) secretion from both endometrial cell types with effective concentrations of 1 (p < 0.05), 10 and 50 ng/ml (p < 0.01). The effect of TNFalpha (10 ng/ml) on endometrial PGF(2alpha) and PGE(2) release was compared with OT (100 nmol/l) and LH (100 ng/ml). All factors affected PGF(2alpha) secretion from stromal cells, however, the stimulation tended to be more potent after OT and LH (p < 0.01) than after TNFalpha (p < 0.05) treatment. In epithelial cells, only TNFalpha was able to stimulate PGF(2alpha) release (p < 0.001). PGE(2) secretion from stromal cells increased after incubation with TNFalpha and OT (p < 0.05). Only LH stimulated PGE(2) release from epithelium (p < 0.001), and its action was very effective when compared with TNFalpha or OT (p < 0.01). Summarizing, TNFalpha induces both PGs secretion from cultured porcine endometrium, but preferentially stimulates PGF(2alpha) release from luminal epithelial cells. Therefore, similarly to OT and LH, TNFalpha may be considered as a potential modulator of endometrial PGF(2alpha) production during luteolysis in the pig.