Today’s case is a 7 year old male neutered Jack Russell terrier with generalized pain, lethargy, and lymph node enlargement. Take a look and post your interpretations in the comments section.

Today’s case is a 2 month old female domestic short haired cat who presents for difficulty breathing. Take a look and post your comments below. Answers available on Monday.

Today’s CT/MRI Society case comes from the University of Tennessee. Click on the link below and make your interpretation.

Today’s case is a 10 year old female neutered Cocker Spaniel with chronic, but recently worsening cough. Previous left cranial lung lobectomy. Take a look and post your interpretation in the comments. Answers available on Monday.

Today’s case is a 12 year old Labrador Retriever with abdominal distension. Take a look at the radiographs and post your comments below. Residents and emergency practitioners: Would you send this dog to surgery? Answers available on Monday.

Today’s case is an 11 year old female neutered domestic short haired cat with episodes of coughing 10-15 times per day. Take a look at the case and post your comments!

Here’s another great case from the CT/MRI society of the ACVR. It’s an MRI of a cat’s brain; click below to see the whole case.

Today’s case is a 5 month old Labrador Retriever who presents for evaluation of a heart murmur. Take a look and post your comments!

Happy New Year to all the readers of Veterinary Radiology! We have a new look for the new decade, so I hope you like it. Here’s our first case of the year. It’s a 14 year old Terrier with diabetes, who is now vomiting. Take a look and post your interpretation in the comments section.

Well time has gotten away from me once again, apologies to everyone who has been waiting patiently for a new case! Today’s case is an 11 year old Golden Retriever with forelimb lameness. Post your comments below, answers available on Monday.

Related Articles

Brachycephalic feline noses: CT and anatomical study of the relationship between head conformation and the nasolacrimal drainage system.

J Feline Med Surg. 2009 Nov;11(11):891-900

Authors: Schlueter C, Budras KD, Ludewig E, Mayrhofer E, Koenig HE, Walter A, Oechtering GU

AIMS: A study was designed to evaluate the influence of head conformation on the course of the nasolacrimal drainage system (NDS) in 31 brachycephalic and 15 mesocephalic cats using computed tomography (CT), CT-dacryocystography and anatomical methods. FINDINGS: The higher the degree of brachycephalia, the more the facial bones and upper canine teeth are displaced dorsally (ie, the more pronounced the dorsorotation). Dorsorotation leads to abnormal dislocation of the ventral nasal concha and to almost horizontally rotated upper canine teeth, and thus a steeply oriented NDS. In severe brachycephalia the NDS is forced to pass below the canine tooth (adopt a V-shaped course) and the drainage function seems to be inefficient. PRACTICAL RELEVANCE: The rotation of the upper canine teeth appears to provide a basis for classification of brachycephalia in cats. The authors recommend that breeders avoid breeding from individuals affected by this condition and to give preference to cats with longer facial bones.

PMID: 19857852 [PubMed - in process]

Prevalence of clinical abnormalities in cats found to have nonneoplastic middle ear disease at necropsy: 59 cases (1991-2007).

J Am Vet Med Assoc. 2009 Oct 1;235(7):841-3

Authors: Schlicksup MD, Van Winkle TJ, Holt DE

Objective-To determine the prevalence of nonneoplastic middle ear disease among cats undergoing necropsy and the prevalence of clinical abnormalities in cats in which nonneoplastic middle ear disease was identified. Design-Retrospective case series. Animals-59 cats that underwent necropsy between January 1991 and August 2007. Procedures-Medical records were searched to identify cats in which nonneoplastic middle ear disease was identified at necropsy. For cats included in the study, data that were recorded included signalment, initial complaint, whether the cat had any clinical signs of middle or external ear disease, whether the cat had upper respiratory tract disease, necropsy diagnosis, gross appearance of the bullae, and reason for euthanasia. Signs of middle ear disease that were considered included unilateral peripheral vestibular disease without motor deficits, Horner syndrome, and facial nerve paralysis. Results-Of the 3,442 cats that underwent necropsy during the study period, 59 (1.7%) had nonneoplastic middle ear disease. Six of the 59 (10%) cats, including 1 cat that was affected bilaterally, had clinical signs of middle ear disease. Of these, 5 had signs of unilateral peripheral vestibular disease, and 1 had Horner syndrome. Conclusions and Clinical Relevance-Results suggested that most cats with nonneoplastic middle ear disease did not have associated clinical signs. Findings may be of clinical relevance for cats in which middle ear disease is identified as an incidental finding during computed tomography or magnetic resonance imaging for unrelated diseases.

PMID: 19793014 [PubMed - in process]

What is your diagnosis?

J Am Vet Med Assoc. 2009 Oct 1;235(7):823-4

Authors: Lowrie M, Carrera I, Trevail T, Wessmann A

PMID: 19793009 [PubMed - in process]

Magnetic Resonance Imaging in Dogs with Neurologic Impairment Due to Acute Thoracic and Lumbar Intervertebral Disk Herniation.

J Vet Intern Med. 2009 Sep 22;

Authors: Levine JM, Fosgate GT, Chen AV, Rushing R, Nghiem PP, Platt SR, Bagley RS, Kent M, Hicks DG, Young BD, Schatzberg SJ

Background: Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) is a correlate to physical examination in various myelopathies and a predictor of functional outcome. Objectives: To describe associations among MRI features, neurological dysfunction before MRI, and functional outcome in dogs with disk herniation. Animals: One hundred and fifty-nine dogs with acute thoracolumbar disk herniation. Methods: Retrospective case series. Signalment, initial neurological function as assessed by a modified Frankel score (MFS), and ambulatory outcome at hospital discharge and >3 months (long-term) follow-up were recorded from medical records and telephone interview of owners. Associations were estimated between these parameters and MRI signal and morphometric data. Results: Dogs with intramedullary T2W hyperintensity had more severe pre-MRI MFS (median 2, range 0-4) and lower ambulatory proportion at long-term follow-up (0.76) than those dogs lacking hyperintensity (median MFS 3, range 0-5; ambulatory proportion, 0.93) (P=.001 and .013, respectively). Each unit of T2W length ratio was associated with a 1.9 times lower odds of long-term ambulation when adjusted for pre-MRI MFS (95% confidence interval 1.0-3.52, P=.05). Dogs with a compressive length ratio >1.31 (which was the median ratio within this population) had more severe pre-MRI MFS (median 3, range 0-5) compared with those with ratios </=1.31 (median MFS 3, range 0-4; P=.006). Conclusions and Clinical Importance: MRI features were associated with initial injury severity in dogs with thoracolumbar disk herniation. Based on results of this study, the T2W length ratio and presence of T2W intramedullary hyperintensity appear to be predictive of long-term ambulatory status.

PMID: 19780928 [PubMed - as supplied by publisher]

[Megaesophagus secondary to an esophageal leiomyoma and concurrent esophagitis.]

Schweiz Arch Tierheilkd. 2009 Oct;151(10):497-501

Authors: Kook P, Wiederkehr D, Makara M, Reusch C

A 13-year-old male intact Golden Retriever was presented for chronic regurgitation and vomitus. The only clinical abnormality was halitosis, a neurological examination was normal. Thoracic radiography revealed a moderately distended, air-filled esophagus and a presumptive diagnosis of idiopathic megaesophagus was made. No other disorder causing abnormal esophageal motor function could be identified. As supportive and anticholinergic therapy failed to improve the dogs condition and ongoing regurgitation worsened, owners opted for euthanasia. Postmortem examination revealed a small (1.5 cm diameter) mass in the terminal esophagus. Microscopically a leio-myoma with mild multifocal mixed-cell esophagitis was diagnosed. This report illustrates how a potentially curable disease such as leiomyoma can clinically mimic acquired idiopathic megaesophagus and emphasizes that additional diagnostic procedures (contrast study, esophagoscopy) can be indicated in individual cases.

PMID: 19780011 [PubMed - in process]