Peer-reviewed veterinary case report
Bite wounds involving the spine: characteristics, therapy and outcome in seven cases.
- Journal:
- Veterinary journal (London, England : 1997)
- Year:
- 2008
- Authors:
- Chai, Orit et al.
- Affiliation:
- Koret School of Veterinary Medicine
Plain-English summary
This study looked at seven pets—five dogs and two cats—who had bite wounds to their spines. The dogs were all bitten in the neck area and had trouble moving their legs, while the cats were bitten in the lower back, with one having some leg movement and the other unable to move its back legs at all. All pets had fractures in their spines, and they received treatments like antibiotics, steroids, and pain relief. Some pets had surgery to clean the wounds, and those with neck injuries had their fractures stabilized with casts, while the cats were kept in cages to rest. Out of the seven pets, six survived, and five of them were able to walk well again within a month, suggesting that the treatments used were effective.
Abstract
Medical records of five dogs and two cats with bite wounds to the spine were reviewed. All dogs were bitten in the cervical spine and presented as quadriparetic. Both cats were bitten at the lumbar spine; one was paraparetic and the other paraplegic. Concomitant injuries to structures other than the spine were seen in two cases. Radiographic findings included vertebral fractures in all cases. Medical therapy included antibiotics (7/7), methylprednisolone sodium succinate (4/7) and analgesia (7/7). Five cases underwent minor (4/5) or extensive (1/5) surgical debridement. All cervical fractures were stabilized with fiberglass casts and animals with lumbar injury were cage rested for a month. Six of the cases survived, five of which regained good to excellent ambulatory ability within the first month. Although, the numbers of reported cases are limited, this study shows that adequate surgical debridement and wound drainage combined with external coaptation can be sufficient to manage bite wounds that involve the spine.
Find similar cases for your pet
PetCaseFinder finds other peer-reviewed reports of pets with the same symptoms, plus a plain-English summary of what was tried across them.
Search related cases →Original publication: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/17560149/