Peer-reviewed veterinary case report
Early cartilage and bone changes in young Labradors with medial
By Lau, S F et al.·Published in Veterinary journal (London, England : 1997)·2013·Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Netherlands·View original on PubMed →
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Original publication title: Assessment of articular cartilage and subchondral bone using EPIC-microCT in Labrador retrievers with incipient medial coronoid disease.
- Species:
- dog
Plain-English summary
A group of young Labrador retrievers, aged 15 to 27 weeks, was studied for early signs of medial coronoid disease (MCD), which can cause joint pain and limping. Out of 14 dogs, six had bilateral MCD and one had unilateral MCD, confirmed through advanced imaging techniques. The researchers found that the cartilage in the affected dogs showed significant changes compared to those without MCD, indicating that the cartilage was affected early in the disease. However, the density of the bone beneath the cartilage did not show significant changes at this stage. Understanding these early signs can help veterinarians better diagnose and manage this condition in young Labradors.
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Abstract
The aetiopathogenesis of medial coronoid disease (MCD) remains obscure, despite its high prevalence. The role of changes to subchondral bone or articular cartilage is much debated. Although there is evidence of micro-damage to subchondral bone, it is not known whether this is a cause or a consequence of MCD, nor is it known whether articular cartilage is modified in the early stages of the disease. The aim of the present study was to use equilibrium partitioning of an ionic contrast agent with micro-computed tomography (microCT) to investigate changes to both the articular cartilage and the subchondral bone of the medial coronoid processes (MCP) of growing Labrador retrievers at an early stage of the disease and at different bodyweights. Of 14 purpose-bred Labrador retrievers (15-27 weeks), six were diagnosed with bilateral MCD and one was diagnosed with unilateral MCD on the basis of microCT studies. The mean X-ray attenuation of articular cartilage was significantly higher in dogs with MCD than in dogs without MCD (P<0.01). In all dogs, the mean X-ray attenuation of articular cartilage was significantly higher at the lateral (P<0.001) than at the proximal aspect of the MCP, indicating decreased glycosaminoglycan content. Changes in parameters of subchondral bone micro-architecture, namely the ratio of bone volume to tissue volume (BV/TV), bone surface density (BS/TV), bone surface to volume ratio (BS/BV), trabecular thickness (Tb.Th; mm), size of marrow cavities described by trabecular spacing (Tb.Sp; mm), and structural model index (SMI), differed significantly by litter (P<0.05) due to the difference in age and weight, but not by the presence/absence of MCD (P>0.05), indicating that subchondral bone density is not affected in early MCD. This study demonstrated that cartilage matrix and not subchondral bone density is affected in the early stages of MCD.
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Search related cases →Original publication on PubMed: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/23846028/