Peer-reviewed veterinary case report
Cervical spine narrowing from vertebral arch defect in Basset Hounds
By De Decker, S et al.·Published in Journal of veterinary internal medicine·2012·Department of Veterinary Clinical Sciences, United Kingdom·View original on PubMed →
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Original publication title: Cervical vertebral stenosis associated with a vertebral arch anomaly in the Basset Hound.
- Species:
- dog
Plain-English summary
A group of Basset Hounds, aged between 6 months and 10.8 years, were brought in for neck pain and difficulty walking, which are signs of a spinal cord issue. Imaging tests revealed a bone abnormality in the neck that was causing pressure on the spinal cord, mainly due to thickening of a ligament. Ten of the dogs had surgery to relieve the pressure, which resulted in a good recovery and short hospital stays, while five received medical treatment with mixed results. This condition is important for Basset Hound owners to be aware of, especially if their dog shows signs of neck pain or weakness.
People also search for: Basset Hound neck pain treatment · dog spinal cord problem symptoms · cervical vertebral stenosis in dogs
Abstract
OBJECTIVES: To report the clinical presentation, imaging characteristics, treatment results, and histopathological findings of a previously undescribed vertebral malformation in the Basset Hound. ANIMALS AND METHODS: Retrospective case series study. Eighteen Basset Hounds presented for evaluation of a suspected cervical spinal cord problem. All dogs underwent computed tomography myelography or magnetic resonance imaging of the cervical region. RESULTS: Thirteen male and 5 female Basset Hounds between 6 months and 10.8 years of age (median: 1.4 years) were studied. Clinical signs varied from cervical hyperesthesia to nonambulatory tetraparesis. Imaging demonstrated a well-defined and smooth hypertrophy of the dorsal lamina and spinous process of ≥ 2 adjacent vertebrae. Although this bony abnormality could decrease the ventrodorsal vertebral canal diameter, dorsal midline spinal cord compression was predominantly caused by ligamentum flavum hypertrophy. The articulation between C4 and C5 was most commonly affected. Three dogs were lost to follow-up, 10 dogs underwent dorsal laminectomy, and medical management was initiated in 5 dogs. Surgery resulted in a good outcome with short hospitalization times (median: 4.5 days) in all dogs, whereas medical management produced more variable results. Histopathology confirmed ligamentum flavum hypertrophy and demonstrated the fibrocartilaginous nature of this anomaly. CONCLUSIONS AND CLINICAL IMPORTANCE: Dorsal lamina and spinous process hypertrophy leading to ligamentum flavum hypertrophy should be included in the differential diagnosis of Basset Hounds with cervical hyperesthesia or myelopathy. Prognosis after decompressive surgery is favorable. Although a genetic component is suspected, additional studies are needed to determine the specific etiology of this disorder.
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Search related cases →Original publication on PubMed: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/22978330/