Following on from our splenic torsion case, a couple of days later I saw a similarly interesting spleen. The patient was a 9 y.o. MN mixed breed dog presenting with progressive malaise, anorexia, weight loss, abdominal pain and vomiting. On physical examination he exhibited ecchymoses/bruising on his flank. His blood biochemistry was relatively unremarkable but … Continue reading
*Advanced warning -gory surgical photo involved here* This Great Dane presented with acute, non-tympanic abdominal distention and malaise. On sonography the spleen exhibits the classic ‘starry sky’ parenchymal pattern which is typical although not specific for torsion: There is no detectable flow in the splenic vessels with Doppler. At the point where the splenic veins … Continue reading
Transitional cell carcinomas are the commonest bladder neoplasm of dogs. However they only account for 70% of the total. Moreover, it’s important not to assume that all bladder tumours are TCCs since that may discourage partial cystectomy in situations where it may prove beneficial. This lesion in an 8 year old dog was found on … Continue reading
Strangulation is on the list of differentials for pulmonary oedema: post-obstructive pulmonary oedema (POPE). The pathophysiology is thought to involve negative intra-pulmonary presure resulting from strenous efforts to inhale against a closed airway. This puppy suffered an episode of accidental strangulation. Having survived the acute episode he then presented a few hours later with progressive … Continue reading
This is a bit of a heart-breaker really; it’s just that the images are dramatic. The patient, a previously healthy young adult Chihuahua suffered acute onset malaise with occasional vomiting. Symptomatic treatment including NSAIDs at routine doses was administered. Subsequently she deteriorated abruptly becoming weak and recumbent with apparent abdominal pain. Routine haematology and biochemistry … Continue reading
There’s a certain amount of pressure as a peripatetic clinician to achieve a diagnostic outcome. The present patient is a classic of the ‘not easy’ genre. An elderly dog with recent onset inappetence-progressing-to-anorexia but lack of other specific signs. After routine anamnesis, physical examination, haematology and routine biochemistry we have: -weight loss, inappetence -no … Continue reading
The expansion of veterinary knowledge continues apace. It sometimes feels a challenge just to keep up to date with the state of play even one small area like portosystemic shunts. The excellent and seminal 2008 edition of ‘Atlas of Small Animal Ultrasonography’ unequivocally states that a portal vein:aorta ratio >0.8 rules out a congenital extrahepatic … Continue reading
This is just an excuse for some nice images. The patient is a 3 year old Lhasa apso with signs and bile acids consistent with a portosystemic shunt. Longitudinal plane images from the right side behind the last rib looking at the area of the great vessels and porta hepatis. The vena cava is clearly … Continue reading
I’ve written before about the possible link between ureteral calculi and renal infarction in cats. The more of these cats we see the more I suspect that calculi are very common and also that most of them pass through undiagnosed. My hypothesis is that this might explain the number of cats we see with renal … Continue reading
A previously-healthy, three-year-old, indoor DSH was presented with a 2 day history of cough and deteriorating respiratory distress. These are the thoracic radiographs: Looks pretty suspicious for a right sided pneumothorax. This is cat who has definitely no contact with motor vehicles. But….spontaneous pneumothorax is certainly a possibility: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/24697868 http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/22344603 It’s not common and, as … Continue reading
