Peer-reviewed veterinary case report
Two older dogs with neck disc cysts and weak legs treated by surgery
By Kang, Byung-Jae et al.·Published in Journal of veterinary science·2015·College of Veterinary Medicine, South Korea·View original on PubMed →
PetCaseFinder translated the abstract of this peer-reviewed paper into plain English so pet owners can read it. We do not publish original research — every detail traces back to the citation above. How we work →
Original publication title: Discal cysts of the cervical spine in two dogs.
- Species:
- dog
Plain-English summary
Two older dogs were brought in for weakness in all four legs and neck pain. Imaging showed rare cysts located near the discs in their necks, which were causing their symptoms. The veterinarians performed surgery to relieve the pressure from these cysts, and both dogs showed significant improvement afterward. This case highlights that discal cysts can be a cause of neck pain and weakness in dogs, and surgery can be an effective treatment.
People also search for: dog neck pain · dog weakness in legs · cervical disc cysts treatment · older dog tetraparesis · dog surgery for neck problems
Abstract
Discal cysts, which lie directly over intervertebral discs, are rare. Two old dogs with tetraparesis were referred to our facility. In both animals, magnetic resonance imaging revealed intraspinal extradural cystic mass lesions that were dorsal to degenerative intervertebral discs at the C3-C4 level. These lesions had low signal intensity on T1-weighted images, and high signal intensity on T2-weighted images. A ventral slot approach was used to perform surgical decompression, after which the symptoms improved remarkably. Discal cysts should be included in the differential diagnosis of dogs with cervical pain and tetraparesis. One effective treatment for discal cysts is surgical intervention.
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 on PubMed: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/26040615/