Journal of Small Animal Practice最新文献

Objectives: To describe the electrophoretic pattern of proteinuria in dogs with naturally occurring Cushing's syndrome. We hypothesised that urine protein electrophoresis in dogs with spontaneous Cushing's syndrome will reveal glomerular proteinuria. We also hypothesised that the severity of proteinuria would decrease during treatment with trilostane.

Materials and methods: This prospective study included dogs with spontaneous Cushing's syndrome (n = 19) and healthy dogs (n = 10) serving as controls for urine protein electrophoresis. Urinary proteins were evaluated using sodium dodecyl sulphate agarose gel electrophoresis.

Results: Thirteen dogs with Cushing's syndrome had glomerular proteinuria, with high molecular weight bands between 66 and 150 kDa. Three dogs with Cushing's syndrome had mixed glomerular and tubular proteinuria, with low molecular weight bands between 14.3 and 26 kDa, in addition to high molecular weight bands. Three dogs with Cushing's syndrome had a physiological pattern of urine protein electrophoresis and these dogs were non-proteinuric. Seven dogs were re-evaluated 4 to 6 months after initiating treatment with trilostane. Before treatment, six dogs were proteinuric and one dog was non-proteinuric. After the treatment, three dogs were non-proteinuric and four dogs were proteinuric. Of these, proteinuria decreased in one dog (50%) and increased (up to 70%) in three dogs.

Clinical significance: Dogs with Cushing's syndrome predominantly exhibit glomerular proteinuria. No systematic improvement was observed during trilostane treatment.

We would like to comment on “High-dose induction therapy and treatment termination criteria for feline infectious peritonitis with remdesivir, GS-441524 and adjunctive mefloquine: 46 cases (2023) (Kamiyoshi et al., 2025).” A control group that completed 12 weeks of standard treatment was not included in this study, which makes it difficult to determine whether the shortened treatment regimen is as effective or superior to the traditional regimen. Additionally, only patients without neurological or ocular symptoms were screened, which limits the generalisability of the results to the feline infectious peritonitis (FIP) population as a whole. Nevertheless, this study offers a novel approach to stopping treatment for FIP using biochemical markers, such as acute-phase proteins and albumin/globulin ratio to determine the ideal duration of treatment.

Regarding data analysis, no explicit statistical comparisons were made, such as comparing the groups that stopped therapy before 12 weeks and those that finished 12 weeks of treatment, even though the report gives median treatment duration and survival rates. Additionally, the accuracy of the biochemical indicators in forecasting the effectiveness of medication termination was not examined using predictive analysis, such as the receiver operating characteristic curve. Utilising these analyses could greatly increase the suggested clinical decision-making approach’s dependability.

Analysing which acute-phase protein values have the biggest impact on the decision to stop therapy is one way to expand the conversation. Furthermore, what ought to be the clinical cut-off? Furthermore, it should be made clear whether the use of adjuvant medication, such as mefloquine, following the cessation of remdesivir/GS-441524 before 12 weeks serves as a preventative measure or as a remedy for treatment that is not yet complete. Another crucial query is whether the remdesivir and GS-441524 groups’ results differed in any way.

In order to guide future research, a randomised controlled trial should be carried out to compare a typical 12-week treatment with a strategy based on customised biochemical indicators. To build a more precise predictive model for treatment effectiveness in every instance, criteria utilising a variety of data, including globulin, SAA, haptoglobin, A/G ratio and clinical symptoms, should also be constructed. Additionally, long-term research should be done to track adverse effects and recurrence following therapy, particularly in cats with complicated neurological or ophthalmic problems.

H. Daungsupawong: Conceptualization; visualization; validation; writing – review and editing; writing – original draft. V. Wiwanitkit: Conceptualization; visualization; validation; supervision.

There is no funding.

The authors declare no conflict of interest.

The author uses a language editing computational tool in preparation of the article.

Objective: To evaluate clinical, pathological and prognostic features and outcomes of dogs with surgically excised cutaneous and subcutaneous digital or distal limb mast cell tumours.

Materials and methods: Medical records between 2014 and 2024 were reviewed, and signalment, clinicopathological testing, tumour location, recurrence, complications and histological characteristics were recorded. Additionally, progression-free interval and overall survival time were evaluated. One hundred and fifteen client-owned dogs with mast cell tumour admitted to two academic institutions were included.

Results: Surgical complications occurred in 38% of dogs with surgical site infection and incisional dehiscence most common. Local recurrence occurred in 23% of dogs overall, with completely excised tumours having 10% recurrence, narrowly excised 20% and incompletely excised 35%. Higher recurrence rates occurred with incomplete surgical margins, mitotic count >5 and histologically high-grade mast cell tumours. The median progression-free interval was significantly longer for wide excision (2270 days) compared to marginal excision (888 days). The overall survival time was 7 years for all dogs overall, was not reached for low-grade mast cell tumours and was 3 years for high-grade mast cell tumours. The progression-free interval and overall survival time were affected by tumour grade but not lymph node status.

Clinical significance: The behaviour of canine mast cell tumours affecting the digits and distal limb was affected primarily by tumours grade. Recurrence rates were highest in dogs with high-grade mast cell tumours, incomplete surgical resection and a mitotic count of >5. The outcome with surgical excision is excellent. Future studies are needed to further evaluate the effects of adjuvant chemotherapy, metastatic lymph node status and lymph node extirpation in high-grade mast cell tumour cases.

Objectives: To report the impact of the surgical approach (T-shaped or circular incision) on intraoperative and postoperative complications associated with total ear canal ablation and lateral bulla osteotomy.

Materials and methods: Medical records of dogs that underwent total ear canal ablation and lateral bulla osteotomy with T-shaped or circular incisions between 10 referral hospitals were retrospectively reviewed. Intraoperative and postoperative complications and follow-up were analysed and compared between groups using Fisher's exact test for categorical data and the Mann-Whitney rank-sum test for numerical data, with P < 0.05 considered significant.

Results: One hundred and forty-two dogs were included, totalling 156 surgeries: 84 were performed via circular incision (O-group) and 72 with a T-shaped incision (T-group). The groups were similar for sex (P = 0.182) and body weight (P = 0.836) distribution; the T-group was older at the time of surgery (P = 0.019). Intraoperative bleeding occurred in 13/156 (8%) dogs and significantly more frequently in the O-group (P = 0.03; 11 O-group [7%], two T-group [1%]). Postoperative complication rate was 38.6% (n = 60): wound complications occurred in 31/156 (20%) dogs, more frequently in the T-group (P ≤ 0.001; eight O-group [5%], 23 T-group [15%]); postoperative facial nerve neuropathy occurred in 31/156 (20%) dogs, and weakly associated with the O-group (P = 0.045; 22 O-group [14.1%], nine T-group [5.8%]).

Clinical significance: Surgical preference may guide the choice between performing T-shaped or circular incisions during total ear canal ablation with lateral bulla osteotomy. Circular incisions were associated with a higher incidence of intraoperative haemorrhage and postoperative facial nerve neuropathy, while T-shaped incisions may increase the risk of wound complications. Most complications in both groups were minor or self-limiting.

Objectives: This study aimed to examine the association between pterygoid bone medialisation and treatment outcomes after upper airway surgery in three brachycephalic breeds.

Materials and methods: Dogs that underwent CT of the head followed by routine surgery for brachycephalic obstructive airway syndrome were recruited in this study. Measurements obtained from the CT images included the width of the basisphenoid bone, interpterygoid distance and cross-sectional area of the nasopharynx. A ratio of width of the basisphenoid bone to interpterygoid distance allowed quantification of pterygoid bone medialisation. Pearson's correlations were calculated to assess the relationship between width of the basisphenoid bone: interpterygoid distance and cross-sectional area of the nasopharynx. Additionally, width of the basisphenoid bone: interpterygoid distance was compared across breeds, as well as between dogs with good and poor surgical outcomes (post-operative brachycephalic obstructive airway syndrome index ≥50%).

Results: One hundred and forty-four brachycephalic dogs (47 Pugs, 64 French Bulldogs and 33 Bulldogs) and 30 non-brachycephalic controls were included in the analysis. The width of the basisphenoid bone: interpterygoid distance ratio in brachycephalic dogs was significantly higher (1.982 ± 0.379) than that of controls (1.646 ± 0.239, P < 0.001). A negative correlation was observed between width of the basisphenoid bone: interpterygoid distance and cross-sectional area of the nasopharynx in Pugs (ρ = -0.29, P = 0.048), French Bulldogs (ρ = -0.47, P < 0.001), Bulldogs (ρ = -0.71, P < 0.001) and controls (ρ = -0.55, P = 0.002). French Bulldogs with poor surgical outcomes exhibited a significantly higher width of the basisphenoid bone: interpterygoid distance (2.366 ± 0.327) than those with good surgical outcomes (1.813 ± 0.271, P < 0.0001).

Clinical significance: Pterygoid bone medialisation is associated with nasopharyngeal narrowing, which limits the effectiveness of surgical interventions in brachycephalic obstructive airway syndrome in affected French Bulldogs. As there are no surgical options currently reported to address this condition, these findings are important in guiding clinicians in providing prognostic information to owners during elective brachycephalic obstructive airway syndrome surgery.

Objectives: A thorough understanding of common practice patterns in a particular specialty can help identify and design new interventions to improve care delivery and access to care. The goals of this study were to document current practice patterns among veterinary "neurologists" and small animal "surgeons" in the surgical management of acute canine thoracolumbar intervertebral disc extrusion, to compare approaches between these two groups and to discuss current results compared to those published in 2016.

Materials and methods: A web-based survey was distributed in October 2024 to collect responses from board-certified and regionally recognised neurology and surgery specialists in North America and Europe. Data were summarised using descriptive statistics. Chi-squared analysis assessed differences in response distribution between "neurologists" and "surgeons" for specific questions.

Results: A total of 385 survey responses were received. There was a significant difference in the distribution of responses related to caseload between specialties, where "surgeons" most reported 1 to 25 cases per year and "neurologists" most reported managing >100 cases per year. "Surgeons" and "neurologists" did not differ with respect to surgical recommendations based on the severity of neurologic signs. Eighty per cent of "neurologists" and 47% or "surgeons" reported performing concurrent fenestration at the time of surgical decompression. Compared to 2016, utilisation of methylprednisolone sodium succinate and performance of after-hours surgery were reduced in both groups.

Clinical significance: Results of the present survey indicate substantial shifts in practice patterns for surgical management of this disease, some in alignment with current literature and some not. Future work should focus on the comparison of clinical outcomes in dogs imaged with CT versus MRI. Results also suggest a continued lack of clinical equipoise around prognostic factors for recovery and risk factors for progressive myelomalacia, such that future prospective studies could help improve clinician confidence in these areas.

A 12-year-old castrated male golden retriever was referred for evaluation of a palatal mass. Computed tomography identified a 2.7 × 2.0 × 1.5 cm soft tissue mass extending from the caudal aspect of the hard palate to the rostral soft palate. Bilateral caudal maxillectomy was declined by owners; thus, a marginal resection was performed. The resultant palatal defect was closed using porcine small intestinal submucosa. Histopathology was consistent with a poorly pigmented malignant melanoma. The dog recovered well with no incisional complications or difficulty eating. The dog was euthanased 22 months postoperatively by the referring veterinarian. At the time of euthanasia, no evidence of local recurrence was noted. This report describes the novel use of porcine small intestinal submucosa for closure of a full-thickness palatal defect following marginal resection of a malignant oral melanoma.