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IntroductionLarge clinical studies regarding cervical intervertebral disc extrusion (IVDE) in Dachshunds are lacking. This retrospective multicentric study therefore aims to describe the clinical features, magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) findings and outcomes of Dachshunds diagnosed with cervical IVDE.MethodsMedical records of Dachshunds with cervical IVDE were reviewed for signalment, onset of clinical signs, neurological examination, MRI features, treatment and outcome.ResultsEighty Dachshunds were included in the study, mostly ambulatory (55% grade 1 and 33% grade 2) and without nerve root signature (85% of cases) on presentation. Information on coat type was available for 56% of dogs; specifically, 41% were smooth-haired, 9% were long-haired and 6% were wire-haired Dachshunds. There were 29 (36%) neutered female, 27 (34%) male entire, 15 (19%) male neutered and 9 (11%) entire female dogs. The onset of clinical signs was most often >48 h (84%). The most common intervertebral disc space affected was C2-C3 (38%) and foraminal IVDEs were reported in 14% of dogs. A foraminal IVDE was diagnosed in only 25% of dogs presented with nerve root signatures. Most dogs (77.5%) were treated surgically. In this group, a higher body condition score on presentation and a higher mean spinal cord compression ratio calculated on MRI were directly and moderately associated with a longer hospitalization time (r = 0.490 p = 0.005 and r = 0.310 p = 0.012, respectively). The recovery time was longer in dogs with an onset of clinical signs 48 h (3.1 ± 6.5 days versus 1.6 ± 6.2, p

Abstract Background Amyloid A (AA) amyloidosis is a protein misfolding disease arising from serum amyloid A (SAA). Systemic AA amyloidosis recently was shown to have a high prevalence in shelter cats in Italy and was associated with azotemia and proteinuria. Objectives Investigate urine protein profiles and diagnostic biomarkers in cats with renal AA amyloidosis. Animals Twenty‐nine shelter cats. Methods Case‐control study. Cats with renal proteinuria that died or were euthanized between 2018 and 2021 with available necropsy kidney, liver and spleen samples, and with surplus urine collected within 30 days before death, were included. Histology was used to characterize renal damage and amyloid amount and distribution; immunohistochemistry was used to confirm AA amyloidosis. Urine protein‐to‐creatinine (UPC) and urine amyloid A‐to‐creatinine (UAAC) ratios were calculated, and sodium dodecyl sulfate‐agarose gel electrophoresis (SDS‐AGE) and liquid chromatography‐mass spectrometry (LC‐MS) of proteins were performed. Results Twenty‐nine cats were included. Nineteen had AA amyloidosis with renal involvement. Cats with AA amyloidosis had a higher UPC (median, 3.9; range, 0.6‐12.7 vs 1.5; 0.6‐3.1; P = .03) and UAAC ratios (median, 7.18 × 10−3; range, 23 × 10−3‐21.29 × 10−3 vs 1.26 × 10−3; 0.21 × 10−3‐6.33 × 10−3; P = .04) than unaffected cats. The SDS‐AGE identified mixed‐type proteinuria in 89.4% of cats with AA amyloidosis and in 55.6% without AA amyloidosis (P = .57). The LC‐MS identified 63 potential biomarkers associated with AA amyloidosis (P

The erythrocyte sedimentation rate (ESR) has been used in canine medicine in several disorders, above all, to evaluate levels of inflammation. This study evaluated the ESR in canine leishmaniosis (CanL) and other inflammatory conditions. Three groups of dogs were examined: CanL affected dogs without clinical signs (INFECTED group, #25) or with clinical signs (SICK group, #43) and dogs affected by acute or acute-on-chronic conditions (OTHER DISEASE group, #65). The ESR was compared with acute phase proteins or reactants either positive or negative (leukogram, fibrinogen, iron, unsaturated iron binding capacity, ferritin, haptoglobin, and albumin) and immunological markers (gamma-globulins, IgG, and IgM). The ESR was higher in the SICK group than in the INFECTED group (median 39 vs. 11 mm/h; p < 0.0001), as well as in the OTHER DISEASE than in the INFECTED groups (median 41 vs. 11 mm/h; p < 0.0001). The ESR appeared outside the reference range for all dogs in the SICK and OTHER DISEASE groups and almost with similar values (mm/h; median 39, 95% CI 31–51 vs. 41, 95% CI 12–87; p > 0.05). The extent of changes in ESR can help to establish the severity of CanL and other inflammatory disorders. As a point-of-care test, the ESR can be used to screen dogs for unhealthy conditions, and its values correlate with the severity of any disease, including CanL.

Photobiomodulation (PBM) is a newly adopted consensus term to replace the therapeutic application of low-level laser therapy. It has been suggested that PMB influences the microbiome which, in turn, has increasingly been shown to be linked with health and disease. Even though the use of PBM has also grown dramatically in veterinary medicine, there is still a lack of evidence supporting its effect in vivo. Our objective was to investigate the impact of a dual-wavelength near-infrared laser source (Multiwavelength Locked Laser System, MLS®) on the skin microbiome in atopic dogs. Twenty adult-client-owned atopic dogs were enrolled in the study. The dogs were treated with MLS® laser therapy on one half of the abdominal region, whereas the contralateral side was left untreated and served as a control. Skin microbiome samples were collected before and after MLS® treatments, and then subjected to NGS-based ITS and 16S rRNA analysis. The results showed that while microbiome composition and diversity were not significantly affected, PBM could play a role in modulating the abundance of specific bacterial species, in particular Staphylococcus, that represent a major skin pathogenic strain. To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this is the first study to investigate the potential impact of MLS® laser therapy on the skin microbiome in atopic dogs.

Introduction: Large clinical studies regarding cervical intervertebral disc extrusion (IVDE) in Dachshunds are lacking. This retrospective multicentric study therefore aims to describe the clinical features, magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) findings and outcomes of Dachshunds diagnosed with cervical IVDE. Methods: Medical records of Dachshunds with cervical IVDE were reviewed for signalment, onset of clinical signs, neurological examination, MRI features, treatment and outcome. Results: Eighty Dachshunds were included in the study, mostly ambulatory (55% grade 1 and 33% grade 2) and without nerve root signature (85% of cases) on presentation. Information on coat type was available for 56% of dogs; specifically, 41% were smooth-haired, 9% were long-haired and 6% were wirehaired Dachshunds. There were 29 (36%) neutered female, 27 (34%) male entire, 15 (19%) male neutered and 9 (11%) entire female dogs. The onset of clinical signs was most often >48  h (84%). The most common intervertebral disc space affected was C2-C3 (38%) and foraminal IVDEs were reported in 14% of dogs. A foraminal IVDE was diagnosed in only 25% of dogs presented with nerve root signatures. Most dogs (77.5%) were treated surgically. In this group, a higher body condition score on presentation and a higher mean spinal cord compression ratio calculated on MRI were directly and moderately associated with a longer hospitalization time (r  =  0.490 p  =  0.005 and r  =  0.310 p  =  0.012, respectively). The recovery time was longer in dogs with an onset of clinical signs <24  h or 24–48  h compared to those with an onset of clinical signs >48  h (3.1  ±  6.5  days versus 1.6  ±  6.2, p  <  0.001) in both medically and surgically treated groups. Data about the outcome was available for 83% of dogs. Eighty percent of the entire population of dogs was considered to have completely returned to normal. There was no association between the therapeutic choice (surgical versus medical management) and the outcome of the dogs included in this study. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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Background: Amyloid A (AA) amyloidosis is a protein misfolding disease arising from serum amyloid A (SAA). Systemic AA amyloidosis recently was shown to have a high prevalence in shelter cats in Italy and was associated with azotemia and proteinuria. Objectives: Investigate urine protein profiles and diagnostic biomarkers in cats with renal AA amyloidosis. Animals: Twenty‐nine shelter cats. Methods: Case‐control study. Cats with renal proteinuria that died or were euthanized between 2018 and 2021 with available necropsy kidney, liver and spleen samples, and with surplus urine collected within 30 days before death, were included. Histology was used to characterize renal damage and amyloid amount and distribution; immunohistochemistry was used to confirm AA amyloidosis. Urine protein‐to‐creatinine (UPC) and urine amyloid A‐to‐creatinine (UAAC) ratios were calculated, and sodium dodecyl sulfate‐agarose gel electrophoresis (SDS‐AGE) and liquid chromatography‐mass spectrometry (LC‐MS) of proteins were performed. Results: Twenty‐nine cats were included. Nineteen had AA amyloidosis with renal involvement. Cats with AA amyloidosis had a higher UPC (median, 3.9; range, 0.6‐12.7 vs 1.5; 0.6‐3.1; P =.03) and UAAC ratios (median, 7.18 × 10−3; range, 23 × 10−3‐21.29 × 10−3 vs 1.26 × 10−3; 0.21 × 10−3‐6.33 × 10−3; P =.04) than unaffected cats. The SDS‐AGE identified mixed‐type proteinuria in 89.4% of cats with AA amyloidosis and in 55.6% without AA amyloidosis (P =.57). The LC‐MS identified 63 potential biomarkers associated with AA amyloidosis (P <.05). Among these, urine apolipoprotein C‐III was higher in cats with AA amyloidosis (median, 1.38 × 107; range, 1.85 × 105‐5.29 × 107 vs 1.76 × 106; 0.0 × 100‐1.38 × 107; P =.01). In the kidney, AA‐amyloidosis was associated with glomerulosclerosis (P =.02) and interstitial fibrosis (P =.05). Conclusions and Clinical Importance: Renal AA amyloidosis is associated with kidney lesions, increased proteinuria and increased urine excretion of SAA in shelter cats. Additional studies are needed to characterize the role of lipid transport proteins in the urine of affected cats. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

There are no published reports describing the anatomic variations of the phrenicoabdominal (PhAbd) veins in cats. The aim of this study was to evaluate the anatomic variations of the PhAbd veins in cats without adrenal disease. This is an anatomic study. Abdominal CT images of cats acquired from January 2021 to February 2023 were retrospectively reviewed. Inclusion criteria were the presence of pre- and postcontrast CT images of the abdomen and the absence of any abdominal diseases that compromise the left and right PhAbd veins visualization. A total of 128 cats were included. Three different vascular anatomic variations were found in the distal pericaval segment of the left phrenicoabdominal (LPhAbd) vein. In the first type, found in 65 cases (50.8%), the LPhAbd vein drained directly into the caudal vena cava. In the second type defined IIa, found in 25 cases (19.5%), the LPhAbd vein drained into the distal third of the left renal vein, less than 5 mm from its opening into the caudal vena cava. In the third type defined IIb, found in 38 cases (29.7%), the LPhAbd vein drained into the distal third of the left renal vein, more than 5 mm from its opening into the caudal vena cava. The right phrenicoabdominal vein had a consistent path and drained into the caudal vena cava in all cases. The knowledge of these vascular variations is expected to help the surgeon during adrenalectomy due to masses with vascular invasion in cats., (© 2024 American College of Veterinary Radiology.)

Susceptibility-weighted imaging (SWI) is a gradient echo (GE) MRI sequence. Intravenous administration of gadolinium (Gd) may affect GE images, but its effect on SWI has not been investigated in veterinary medicine. This cross-sectional prospective study evaluated the effects of Gd on SWI. Seventy-one dogs that underwent brain MRI were included and distributed in two groups. Susceptibility-weighted imaging was performed pre- and postcontrast, obtained immediately after Gd administration (Group A: n = 35) or delayed (Group B: n = 36; median delay 19.9 min). Pre- and post-Gd SWI were analyzed for signal intensity changes in the lentiform nuclei of gray matter (GM), in the centrum semiovale of white matter (WM), and in brain lesions. No difference in GM signal intensity was identified in either group between pre- and postcontrast images (Group A, P = .395; Group B, P = .895). In group A, WM signal intensity was lower in pre- than post-Gd sequences (P = .019). Brain lesions were identified in 30/71 (41%) cases; the signal intensity of intracranial lesions was significantly lower in pre- than post-Gd images in both groups (P < .001); the number of lesions influenced the difference in signal intensity in group B (P = .043). Susceptibility artifacts did not change in appearance between pre- and postcontrast images in either the normal brain or in parenchymal lesions. In conclusion, Gd may modify the signal intensity of WM and brain lesions but does not affect the susceptibility artifacts and does not interfere with SWI interpretation., (© 2024 American College of Veterinary Radiology.)