Peer-reviewed veterinary case report
CT scan and surgery results for dogs with sublumbar abscesses
By Griffeuille, Emilien et al.·Published in Journal of the American Veterinary Medical Association·2021·View original on PubMed →
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Original publication title: Comparison of computed tomography and surgical findings and investigation of their associations with outcomes for dogs with sublumbar abscesses.
- Species:
- dog
Plain-English summary
A group of 51 dogs with sublumbar abscesses (painful pockets of infection near the spine) underwent surgery after being diagnosed with the help of a CT scan. Most dogs did well after surgery, with only one dog experiencing a serious complication shortly after and a few others having minor issues. However, about 25% of the dogs had the abscess return within six months, and those with a specific spine infection called diskospondylitis were more likely to experience a recurrence. Overall, the prognosis after surgery was good, but monitoring for recurrence is important.
People also search for: dog sublumbar abscess treatment · dog abscess recurrence · diskospondylitis in dogs · CT scan for dog abscess · dog surgery complications
Abstract
OBJECTIVE: To describe and compare the results of preoperative CT and surgical findings in dogs with sublumbar abscesses and investigate potential associations between these variables and the outcome of abscess recurrence. ANIMALS: 51 client-owned dogs. PROCEDURES: A retrospective, records-based study was performed of dogs undergoing surgery for treatment of sublumbar abscesses diagnosed by use of CT between January 2010 and December 2018. Signalment, clinical signs, clinicopathologic data, CT findings, surgical techniques and findings, duration of hospitalization, postoperative treatment, and complications were recorded. Long-term follow-up was performed through telephone interviews. Logistic regression analysis was used to investigate associations between the variables of interest and abscess recurrence. RESULTS: 51 dogs met the study inclusion criteria; 48 were included in outcome analysis. The CT findings agreed with surgical findings for identification of a migrating vegetal foreign body for 39 of 51 (77%) dogs. All dogs survived to hospital discharge; 1 dog died of hemoabdomen 3 days after surgery, and 6 had minor (surgical wound) complications reported. Abscess recurrence developed in 12 of 48 (25%) dogs with a median time to recurrence of 6 months. Identification of diskospondylitis on CT examination was the only investigated factor significantly associated with recurrence; odds of recurrence in dogs with this finding were 8.4 times those for dogs without this finding. CONCLUSIONS AND CLINICAL RELEVANCE: Our results suggested dogs with sublumbar abscesses have a good prognosis after surgery, although recurrence can develop. Preoperative identification of diskospondylitis was significantly associated with abscess recurrence in this study sample.
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Search related cases →Original publication on PubMed: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/34727061/