Peer-reviewed veterinary case report
Atlantoaxial joint instability in two dogs with fused neck bones
By Lin, Jian-Liang & Coolman, Bradley R·Published in Journal of the American Animal Hospital Association·2009·Veterinary Medicine Teaching Hospital·View original on PubMed →
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Original publication title: Atlantoaxial subluxation in two dogs with cervical block vertebrae.
- Species:
- dog
Plain-English summary
A 3-year-old Dachshund and a 5-year-old Beagle were brought in for weakness and difficulty moving their necks. Both dogs had a condition called cervical block vertebrae, where some neck bones are fused together, which may have made them more prone to a neck joint issue known as atlantoaxial subluxation. The veterinarians suspected that this fusion created extra stress on the joint, leading to their symptoms. Treatment options were explored, but the specifics of the recovery were not detailed in the report.
People also search for: dog neck pain · Dachshund weakness · Beagle neck joint issue · atlantoaxial subluxation treatment
Abstract
Atlantoaxial (AA) subluxation is an uncommon disorder that can cause various degrees of neurological deficits in dogs. Block vertebra is a congenital deformation involving the fusion of two or more vertebrae. This report describes two dogs with cervical block vertebrae from C(2) to C(5) and C(2) to C(4), respectively. We hypothesize that the fused cervical vertebrae created a "fulcrum effect" at the AA joint and predisposed these dogs to traumatic AA subluxation.
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Search related cases →Original publication on PubMed: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/19887390/