Comparison between a novel bovine xenoimplant and autogenous cancellous bone graft in tibial tuberosity advancement.

Objective: To compare radiographic healing and clinical outcome of a frontal-opening wedge osteotomy of canine tibiae when the osteotomy site is packed with either a novel bovine xenograft or standard autogenous cancellous bone graft (ACBG).

Study Design: Cohort study.

Animals: Dogs (n = 82) with partial or complete rupture of the cranial cruciate ligament that had tibial tuberosity advancement (TTA).

Facial swelling and discharging lesions associated with abnormalities of the mandible in kunekune pigs.

Case Histories: Four adult kunekune pigs developed facial swelling at the base of the right ear that ruptured and discharged food material. A further six pigs that had similar clinical signs were reported by members of the New Zealand Kunekune Association who responded to an email survey, one of which was confirmed by post-mortem examination.

Clinical Findings: Inside the mouth of each pig there was an opening at the junction of the body and ramus of the mandible just lateral to the most caudal visible molar that was impacted with masticated feed.

Seasonal variation in the hip score of dogs as assessed by the New Zealand Veterinary Association hip dysplasia scheme.

Aim: To determine whether there is a seasonal variation in the phenotypic hip score of dogs born in New Zealand as assessed by the New Zealand Veterinary Association (NZVA) canine hip dysplasia (CHD) scheme.

Methods: Data from dogs born in New Zealand between 1988 and 2009 that have been scored for CHD were retrospectively evaluated for the effect of month of birth on radiographic phenotype. Data included both the total score and the subtotal score, comprising Norberg's angle, the subluxation score and changes to the cranial acetabular edge, for each dog.

Distal aortic aneurysm presumed to be secondary to an infected umbilical artery in a foal.

Case History: A 3-month-old female Warmblood foal was presented after displaying signs of colic with pyrexia for 5 days.

Clinical And Pathological Findings: The foal continued to show signs of colic, frequently passed urine, and was pyrexic with an elevated white blood cell count. The umbilical stalk was thickened but there was no evidence of purulent material.

Long-term outcomes after partial tarsal arthrodesis in working farm dogs in New Zealand.

Aim: To report the long-term outcome (return to work and owner satisfaction) for working farm dogs in New Zealand after partial tarsal arthrodesis for proximal intertarsal and/or tarsometatarsal tarsal joint injury.

Methods: Working farm dogs that underwent partial tarsal arthrodesis were identified by diagnosis and breed code via a search of the medical records of Massey University Veterinary Teaching Hospital (MUVTH) and Veterinary Specialist Orthopaedic Services (VetSOS). Fourteen dogs fulfilled the selection criteria and were all actively in work on farms at the time of injury.

Computer-assisted surgical correction of an antebrachial deformity in a dog.

Objective: To report the use of three dimensional (3D) computed tomographic (CT) imaging, computer simulation and rapid prototype modelling to aid surgical correction of a complex antebrachial deformity in a dog.

Methods: A six-year-old, 13 kg spayed female Chihuahua crossbreed dog was presented for worsening forelimb gait and exercise intolerance. Both forelimbs had gross angular limb deformity with carpal hyper-flexion, valgus and radial procurvatum.

An assessment of the agreement between the New Zealand Veterinary Association Hip Dysplasia Scoring System and the PennHIP Distraction Index in German Shepherd dogs.

Aim: To determine the level of agreement between the New Zealand Veterinary Association (NZVA) Hip Dysplasia Scoring System and the University of Pennsylvania Hip Improvement Program (PennHIP) Distraction Index in German Shepherd dogs, and whether using the NZVA subtotal score or its components affected the level of agreement.

Methods: A prospective study was performed using 47 German Shepherd police dogs undergoing breeding evaluation. All dogs were scored using the NZVA system and the PennHIP index.

Degenerative lumbosacral stenosis in working dogs: current concepts and review.

Degenerative lumbosacral stenosis (DLSS) is characterised by intervertebral disc degeneration, with secondary bony and soft-tissue changes leading to compression of the cauda equina. Large-breed, active and working dogs are the most commonly affected by DLSS. Specific manipulative tests allow the clinician to form a high suspicion of DLSS, and initiate investigation.

Long-term assessment of pancarpal arthrodesis performed on working dogs in New Zealand.

Aim: To determine the outcomes following unilateral pancarpal arthrodesis (PCA) in working dogs in New Zealand, in terms of return to work and ability, as assessed by the owner.

Methods: Working dogs treated using unilateral PCA were identified by searching the medical records of the Massey University Veterinary Teaching Hospital (MUVTH) by diagnosis and breed code. Eight Heading dogs (working Collies) and four New Zealand Huntaways were identified with carpal pathology that had been treated by dorsal-plate application, bone-grafting, and casting.

Management of fractures of the long bones of eight cats using external skeletal fixation and a tied-in intra-medullary pin with a resin-acrylic bar.

Case History And Clinical Findings: Eight feline patients with fractures of the femur, tibia or humerus were presented non-weight-bearing, with varying degrees of soft tissue and concurrent injury. Five fractures were comminuted, two were open fractures and there was one malunion.

Treatment: Fracture repair was performed in each case using a low-cost resin-acrylic external skeletal fixator (ESF).

Necrotising fasciitis associated with Escherichia coli in a dog.

Case History: Lameness and limb pain associated with a laceration in the inner thigh of a Border Collie dog progressed over 4 days to extensive necrosis of the full-thickness of skin and subcutaneous (S/C) tissue. A successful outcome was achieved using surgical debridement and intensive supportive care, followed by limited local closure, axial pattern flap development, and free skin grafting.

Clinical Findings: Clinical findings included severe pain, depression, pyrexia and hypoalbuminaemia, and full-thickness loss of skin from the caudal thigh to the hock.

Radioiodide (131I) therapy for the treatment of canine thyroid carcinoma.

Objective: To assess the efficacy of radioactive iodine treatment (131I) for canine thyroid carcinoma, as both the sole therapeutic modality and as an adjunct to surgery.

Design: Retrospective analysis of case records from the Gladesville Veterinary Hospital Nuclear Medicine Service, Sydney, between August 1988 and December 2001.

Case Details: The records of 65 dogs with thyroid carcinoma were analysed according to therapy and outcome.

The evaluation of processed cancellous bovine bone as a bone graft substitute.

Objective: To determine the ability of a novel bovine cancellous bone xenoimplant to act as an osteoconductive graft in an ovine femoral defect model. An autograft harvested from the xenoimplant site was placed in a contralateral limb defect for comparison.

Material And Methods: The xenoimplant used had been rendered immunologically inert by a novel defatting and deproteinating process.

Ability to work and owner satisfaction following surgical repair of common calcanean tendon injuries in working dogs in New Zealand.

Aim: To report the long-term outcome (return to work and owner satisfaction) following surgical treatment of common calcanean tendon (Achilles tendon) injuries in working dogs in New Zealand.

Methods: Ten New Zealand Huntaway or Heading dogs (working Collies) with complete or partial tears of the common calcanean tendon, were treated using locking-loop suturing and casting, with (7) or without (3), a calcaneo-tibial screw. All dogs were actively in work on sheep or cattle farms at the time of injury, and return to work was the desired outcome.

Post-traumatic paraureteral urinoma in a cat.

A retroperitoneal urinoma (uriniferous pseudocyst) was diagnosed in a domestic shorthair cat exhibiting a sublumbar swelling two weeks after a road traffic accident. Plain radiography revealed a soft tissue opacity in the left retroperitoneal space. Intravenous urography and fine-needle aspiration were diagnostic.

Prevalence of laryngeal paresis in dogs undergoing general anaesthesia.

Objective: To estimate the prevalence of laryngeal paresis within a selected population of dogs and identify some of the distinguishing characteristics of affected dogs.

Design: A prospective study involving laryngoscopic examination of 250 dogs.

Procedure: The laryngeal movements of 250 dogs undergoing general anaesthesia were observed.