Myelo-CT imaging findings in 15 dogs with surgically-treated cervical acute compressive hydrated nucleus pulposus extrusion.

Compressive hydrated nucleus pulposus extrusion (HNPE) is a sudden extrusion of hydrated, nondegenerated nucleus pulposus material with well-known characteristic MRI findings. The appearance of compressive HNPE during contrast-enhanced CT has already been described, but never its myelo-CT characteristics. The aim of this retrospective multicenter case series is to describe the myelo-CT findings in 15 dogs with compressive HNPE confirmed with gross surgical findings. A distinctive and consistent myelo-CT appearance of cervical compressive HNPE in dogs that included a focal extradural "seagull"-shaped extradural compression dorsal to the annulus fibrosus combined with a narrowing of the affected intervertebral disc space was found. The extruded material was hypoattenuating in the soft tissue algorithm. Myelo-CT could be a useful diagnostic tool and influence the clinical decision to address cervical compressive HNPE conservatively or surgically when MRI is not available.

Survival Time after Surgical Debulking and Temozolomide Adjuvant Chemotherapy in Canine Intracranial Gliomas.

Intracranial gliomas are associated with a poor prognosis, and the most appropriate treatment is yet to be defined. The objectives of this retrospective study are to report the time to progression and survival times of a group of dogs with histologically confirmed intracranial gliomas treated with surgical debulking and adjuvant temozolomide chemotherapy. All cases treated in a single referral veterinary hospital from 2014 to 2021 were reviewed. Inclusion criteria comprised a histopathological diagnosis of intracranial glioma, adjunctive chemotherapy, and follow-up until death. Cases were excluded if the owner declined chemotherapy or there was insufficient follow-up information in the clinical records. Fourteen client-owned dogs were included with a median time to progression (MTP) of 156 days (95% CI 133-320 days) and median survival time (MST) of 240 days (95% CI 149-465 days). Temozolomide was the first-line adjuvant chemotherapy but changed to another chemotherapy agent (lomustine, toceranib phosphate, or melphalan) when tumour relapse was either suspected by clinical signs or confirmed by advanced imaging. Of the fourteen dogs, three underwent two surgical resections and one, three surgeries. Survival times (ST) were 241, 428, and 468 days for three dogs treated twice surgically and 780 days for the dog treated surgically three times. Survival times for dogs operated once was 181 days. One case was euthanized after developing aspiration pneumonia, and all other cases after progression of clinical signs due to suspected or confirmed tumour relapse. In conclusion, the results of this study suggest that debulking surgery and adjuvant chemotherapy are well-tolerated options in dogs with intracranial gliomas in which surgery is a possibility and should be considered a potential treatment option. Repeated surgery may be considered for selected cases.

Polysulfone tailor-made implant for the surgical correction of a frontoparietal meningoencephalocoele in a cat.

Case summary: A 6-week-old entire female domestic shorthair cat was presented for evaluation of a soft bulge and a palpable skull defect on the forehead, present since adoption a few days earlier. The neurological examination revealed an absent menace response bilaterally and apparent blindness, localising the lesion to the occipital cortex. The main differential diagnoses were meningocoele (MC) and meningoencephalocoele (MEC). Surgical repair was proposed once the cat reached adult size. Meanwhile, the cat developed seizures and was treated with anticonvulsant therapy. At 6 months of age, CT confirmed a frontoparietal MEC with associated porencephaly. Based on a three-dimensional printed skull mould, a polysulfone implant was created. The meninges were dissected from the skin, a durectomy was performed and samples of the protruding brain were obtained. Part of the cerebrospinal fluid was drained until the size of the protruding brain decreased enough to be included below the implant that was anchored on top of the skull with cerclages. Histopathology confirmed the diagnosis of MEC. Three years and 7 months later, the cat had partially recovered vision but continued to seize monthly despite antiepileptic drugs. Relevance and novel information: MC/MEC is a relatively uncommon disease reported in companion animals, and only four cases of surgical management have been described, and did not use a polysulfone tailor-made implant. In human medicine, surgical intervention is the treatment of choice. This case highlights a new implant option for surgical correction of MEC with good long-term result and no complications after 3 years and 7 months.

Transthoracic Vertebral Distraction and Stabilization in 10 Dogs with Congenital Thoracic Vertebral Malformations.

OBJECTIVE: The aim of this study was to describe the surgical technique and outcomes of dogs with congenital thoracic vertebral body malformations (CTVBM) treated with unilateral vertebral distraction and stabilization with monocortical screws and polymethylmethacrylate (PMMA). STUDY DESIGN: Medical records of 10 client-owned dogs with CTVBM were retrospectively searched for signalment, history, neurological examination, neurological grade based on the modified Frankel scale (MFS), diagnostic method, CTVBM location, Cobb's angle, and vertebral canal angle (VCA), surgical procedure, complications and long-term follow-up. RESULTS: One dog suffered cardiac arrest 24 hours post-surgery and died. Median follow-up in nine dogs was 26.5 months (12-50 months). Cobb's angle improved from 33-83 to 10-46 degrees and the VCA ratio from 97-138 to 122-164 degrees. The MFS improved from 3 (n = 3)-4 (n = 7) to 4 (n = 2)-6 (n = 7). Seven dogs recovered full function. Nine dogs improved after surgery compared with preoperative status, recovering ambulation when lost or achieving normal neurological examination in seven cases. No complications were reported during the follow-up period (12-50 months). CONCLUSION: Unilateral transthoracic vertebral distraction and stabilization with monocortical screws and PMMA for treatment of compressive myelopathy due to CTVBM achieved long-term neurological improvement in 9 of 10 dogs.

Long-term outcome of Miniature Schnauzers with genetically confirmed demyelinating polyneuropathy: 12 cases.

BACKGROUND: A demyelinating polyneuropathy with focally folded myelin sheaths was reported in 3 Miniature Schnauzers in France in 2008 and was predicted to represent a naturally occurring canine homologue of Charcot-Marie-Tooth (CMT) disease. A genetic variant of MTRM13/SBF2 has been identified as causative in affected Miniature Schnauzers with this polyneuropathy. OBJECTIVE: To provide data on the long-term progression in affected Miniature Schnauzers from Spain confirmed with the MTRM13/SBF2 genetic variant. ANIMALS: Twelve Miniature Schnauzers presented between March 2013 and June 2019. METHODS: Only dogs presented with consistent clinical signs and homozygous for the MTRM13/SBF2 genetic variant were included. Clinical signs, age of onset and presentation, time from onset to presentation, treatment, outcome, and time from diagnosis to final follow-up were retrospectively reviewed. RESULTS: The hallmark clinical signs at the time of presentation were regurgitation with radiologically confirmed megaesophagus (11/12) and aphonic bark (11/12) with or without obvious neuromuscular weakness despite electrodiagnostic evidence of appendicular demyelinating polyneuropathy. Age of onset and clinical presentation were 3-18 and 4-96 months, respectively. Treatment was mostly symptomatic and consisted of head elevation during meals, antacids, prokinetics, bethanechol, sildenafil, mirtazapine, or some combination of these. During the follow-up period (7-73 months), clinical signs were unchanged in (11/12) cases with aspiration pneumonia developing occasionally (6/12) and being the cause of death in 1 dog. CONCLUSIONS AND CLINICAL IMPORTANCE: Demyelinating polyneuropathy of Miniature Schnauzers tends to remain stable over the long term leading to a good prognosis with preventive feeding measures and symptomatic treatment to control aspiration pneumonia.