Mercury and polychlorinated biphenyls in Asian market fish: a response to results from mercury biomonitoring in New York City.

In 2004, the New York City (NYC) Health and Nutrition Examination Survey measured the highest blood mercury levels in Asian and foreign-born Chinese demographic groups. Fish consumption was the strongest predictor of exposure. The survey did not inquire about consumption of individual species, and subsequent visits to fish markets serving the Asian community suggested that many popular species lack contaminant data.

Relationship between pharyngeal conformation and otitis media with effusion in Cavalier King Charles spaniels.

Otitis media with effusion (OME) is a common incidental finding in otherwise normal Cavalier King Charles spaniels (CKCS). In this study, measurements made on MRI were used to determine whether there was an association between OME and brachycephalic conformation. The results confirm that association and also demonstrate that, in CKCS, greater thickness of the soft palate and reduced nasopharyngeal aperture are significantly associated with OME.

Comparison of survival after surgical or medical treatment in dogs with a congenital portosystemic shunt.

Objective: To compare survival of dogs with a congenital portosystemic shunt (CPSS) that received medical or surgical treatment.

Design: Prospective cohort study.

Animals: 126 client-owned dogs with a single CPSS.

Public health and environmental response to the first case of naturally acquired inhalational anthrax in the United States in 30 years: infection of a new york city resident who worked with dried animal hides.

In Pennsylvania on February 16, 2006, a New York City resident collapsed with rigors and was hospitalized. On February 21, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene were notified that Bacillus anthracis had been identified in the patient's blood. Although the patient's history of working with dried animal hides to make African drums indicated the likelihood of a natural exposure to aerosolized anthrax spores, bioterrorism had to be ruled out first.

Comparison of kinematic variables in defining lameness caused by naturally occurring rupture of the cranial cruciate ligament in dogs.

Objective: To (1) discover kinematic variables that differ between dogs with cranial cruciate ligament rupture (CCLR) and control dogs and (2) to identify suitable outcome variables for longitudinal studies on the effects of surgical interventions for CCLR in dogs.

Study Design: In vivo case-control comparison.

Animals: Dogs with unilateral CCLR (n=16), and no other detectable neurologic or orthopedic disease and 10 dogs without CCLR, neurologic, or orthopedic disease.

Necrotizing cerebellitis and cerebellar atrophy caused by Neospora caninum infection: magnetic resonance imaging and clinicopathologic findings in seven dogs.

Background: Adult dogs with neosporosis can develop a variety of neurologic signs. No area of predilection within the nervous system so far has been identified in adult dogs.

Objectives: To document neosporosis as a cause of progressive cerebellar ataxia and cerebellar atrophy in dogs.

Do agility and skull architecture influence the geometry of the mammalian vestibulo-ocular reflex?

The spatial arrangement of the semicircular canals and extraocular muscles of the eye has been of considerable interest, particularly to researchers working on adaptations of the vestibulo-ocular reflex. Here we offer the first, extensive comparative analysis of the spatial relationships between each extraocular muscle and the canal providing its primary excitatory stimulus. The sample consisted of 113 specimens, representing 51 extant mammalian species.

Semicircular canals and agility: the influence of size and shape measures.

The semicircular canals of the inner ear sense angular accelerations and decelerations of the head and enable co-ordination of posture and body movement, as well as visual stability. Differences of agility and spatial sensitivity among species have been linked to interspecific differences in the relative size of the canals, particularly the radius of curvature (R) and the ratio of the canal plane area to streamline length (P/L). Here we investigate the scaling relationships of these two size variables and also out-of-plane torsion in the three semicircular canals (anterior, posterior and lateral), in order to assess which is more closely correlated with body size and locomotor agility.

Predicting recovery of urination control in cats after sacrocaudal injury: a prospective study.

Objectives: To determine whether intact tail base pain sensation predicts control of urination after sacrocaudal fracture-subluxation in cats.

Methods: Twenty-one cats affected by sacrocaudal fracture-subluxation were diagnosed routinely by radiography. The ability of each cat to detect a painful stimulus applied to the tail base was tested by application of pressure using a standard surgical instrument.

The effect of omeprazole on oesophageal pH in dogs during anaesthesia.

Objectives: Intra-operative, gastro-oesophageal reflux may be associated with post-anaesthestic complications such as oesophagitis and oesophageal stricture in dogs. The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of preoperative administration of omeprazole, a proton pump inhibitor, on oesophageal pH in anaesthetised dogs.

Methods: Forty-seven dogs undergoing elective pelvic limb orthopaedic surgery were enrolled into the study.

Survey of pet owners' expectations of surgical practice within first opinion veterinary clinics in Great Britain.

Objectives: The expectations of small animal pet owners in Great Britain were evaluated on a number of issues regarding aseptic practice and clinical management and compared with final year veterinary students' assessment of actual veterinary practice.

Materials And Methods: A survey was completed by 328 small animal pet owners and 56 veterinary practices in Great Britain. Questions from the pet owner survey related to expectations and opinions on a number of surgical issues and questions from the veterinary surgeon survey examined veterinary practice in relation to the same issues.

Innervation of canine skin: an immunohistochemical study.

The general appearance of the innervation of samples of skin from 10 young beagles was studied by using the pan-neuronal immunolabel PGP9.5, and quantitative data on the density of the nerve fibres was obtained. The data provide a baseline for the development of a diagnostic test for small fibre neuropathy in domestic dogs.

Symptomatic tongue atrophy due to atypical polymyositis in a Pembroke Welsh Corgi.

A three-year-old, 7.3-kg, female Pembroke Welsh Corgi exhibited symptomatic tongue atrophy, crinkling of the tip of the tongue, dysphagia and excessive salivation. Neurological examination suggested multiple cranial neuropathy, but polymyositis was diagnosed by magnetic resonance imaging and muscle biopsy.

Association between cervical and intracranial dimensions and syringomyelia in the cavalier King Charles spaniel.

Objectives: To investigate the possible association between caudal fossa area and cervical vertebral dimensions and the presence of syringomyelia in cavalier King Charles spaniels.

Methods: From magnetic resonance imaging scans of 78 cavalier King Charles spaniels, measurements were made of the widest vertical spinal width at C1/C2, C2, C2/C3 and C3; angulation of the C2/C3 spine; and estimated caudal fossa area. A correlation between these measurements and syringomyelia was sought.

Comparison of two regimens for the treatment of meningoencephalomyelitis of unknown etiology.

Background: The optimal treatment for meningoencephalomyelitis of unknown etiology (MUE) remains unknown, despite the widespread use of a variety of immunosuppressive drugs.

Objective/hypothesis: To compare the efficacy of prednisolone combined with either vincristine and cyclophosphamide (COP group; n= 10) or with cytosine arabinoside (AraC group; n= 9).

Animals: Nineteen dogs with neurological deficits, neuroimaging, and cerebrospinal fluid abnormalities consistent with a diagnosis of MUE.

The matrix metalloproteinase/tissue inhibitor of matrix metalloproteinase profile in colorectal polyp cancers.

Aims: The matrix metalloproteinase (MMP)/tissue inhibitor of metalloproteinase (TIMP) system has a major role in tumour invasion and metastasis. Roles in pathways involved in early tumour development are also being identified for this system, and the aim of this study was to define the expression profile of the major MMPs and TIMPs in colorectal polyp cancers.

Methods And Results: The expression and cellular localization of individual MMPs and TIMPs was determined in colorectal polyp cancers by immunohistochemistry.

Use of a lateral surgical approach to the femoral nerve in the management of two primary femoral nerve sheath tumours.

This case report describes the diagnosis and management of primary femoral nerve sheath tumours in two dogs. Both of the tumours were localised by electromyography (EMG) and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), and were then surgically resected using a novel approach to the iliopsoas muscle via osteotomy of the ventral ilial wing. This approach should be considered when attempting surgical treatment of conditions affecting the iliopsoas muscle or the femoral nerve because it provides excellent exposure of these structures.

Clinical findings and treatment of non-infectious meningoencephalomyelitis in dogs: a systematic review of 457 published cases from 1962 to 2008.

Non-infectious meningoencephalomyelitis (NIME) presents clinicians with diagnostic problems because specific diagnosis requires histopathological examination of central nervous system (CNS) tissue. In the absence of a precise diagnosis, clinicians refer instead to 'meningoencephalomyelitis of unknown origin' (MUO). This article compares published data on histopathologically diagnosed disease (granulomatous meningoencephalomyelitis and necrotising encephalitis) with information available on the clinically-defined category of MUO.

Electrophysiologic evidence of polyneuropathy in a cat with signs of bilateral brachial plexus neuropathy.

Case Description: A 2-year-old spayed female domestic shorthair cat was examined because of bilateral thoracic limb weakness of acute onset.

Clinical Findings: Clinical signs included muscle atrophy, paresis, depressed spinal reflexes, hyperesthesia of the thoracic limbs, and reduced jaw muscle tone. Pelvic limb reflexes were normal.

Clinical diagnosis and treatment of suspected neuropathic pain in three dogs.

Three dogs were referred to The Queen's Veterinary School Hospital at University of Cambridge for chronic behavioural or locomotor disorders associated with pain. All three had been unsuccessfully treated with conventional analgesics, including non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, glucocorticoids and opiate agonists, prior to referral, with minimal or no response. They were investigated by neurological examination plus conventional ancillary diagnostic tests and therapeutic drug trials.

Thoracic stenosis causing lateral compression of the spinal cord in two immature Dogues de Bordeaux.

This case report describes a novel developmental vertebral malformation in two young Dogues de Bordeaux, which was diagnosed by magnetic resonance imaging. Both dogs were treated surgically with reasonable success.

Assessment of humeral length in dogs after repair of Salter-Harris type IV fracture of the lateral part of the humeral condyle.

Objective: To evaluate the effect of fracture and subsequent repair on future bone growth of the humerus after Salter-Harris type IV fracture of the lateral part of the humeral condyle (LPHC).

Study Design: Prospective study.

Animals: Dogs (n=11).

Uptake of systemically administered magnetic nanoparticles (MNPs) in areas of experimental spinal cord injury (SCI).

The regenerative potential of the adult central nervous system (CNS) is limited, contributing to poor recovery from neurological insult. Many genes have been identified that promote neural regeneration, but the current viral methods used to mediate neural gene transfer have a range of drawbacks, notably safety. Non-viral magnetic nanoparticle (MNP)-based vector systems offer significant advantages over viral systems, including: (a) safety; (b) flexibility of functionalization with genetic material; (c) potential for non-invasive magnetic targeting; and (d) imaging potential.

Quantification of deficits in lateral paw positioning after spinal cord injury in dogs.

Background: Previous analysis of the behavioural effects of spinal cord injury has focussed on coordination in the sagittal plane of movement between joints, limb girdle pairs or thoracic and pelvic limb pairs. In this study we extend the functional analysis of the consequences of clinical thoracolumbar spinal cord injury in dogs to quantify the well-recognised deficits in lateral stability during locomotion. Dogs have a high centre of mass thereby facilitating recognition of lateral instability.