Peer-reviewed veterinary case report
Dog with forelimb lameness due to growth plate issue - treatment
By Preston, C A·Published in Australian veterinary journal·2000·Department of Surgical and Radiological Sciences, United States·View original on PubMed →
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Original publication title: Distraction osteogenesis to treat premature distal radial growth plate closure in a dog.
- Species:
- dog
Plain-English summary
A 4-month-old Labrador was brought in for limping and pain in the elbow. X-rays showed that the growth plate in the dog's forelimb had closed too early, causing misalignment of the bones. To fix this, the veterinarian used a special device to gradually lengthen the bone over time. After about 69 days, the bone healed well enough for the device to be removed, and while the dog had some mild lameness after exercise a year later, it was manageable. Some minor complications occurred, but overall, the treatment was successful.
People also search for: puppy limping elbow pain · Labrador growth plate injury treatment · dog bone lengthening procedure
Abstract
A 4-month-old Labrador was presented for forelimb lameness and elbow pain. Radiography revealed asymmetric premature closure of the distal radial physis resulting in humeroradial and humero-ulnar subluxation. A four-ring circular external fixator applied to the antebrachium was used to perform distraction osteogenesis. After a 4 day latency period, varying rates of linear distraction were used to lengthen the radius by 50% of its original length, which is significantly longer than has been previously reported. By 69 days after performing the radial osteotomy, the distraction callus had achieved clinical union and the fixator was removed. One year postoperatively, mild lameness was present after exercise and minimal elbow osteo-arthritis was evident radiographically. Complications observed included pin tract drainage, transient carpal contracture and radio-ulnar synostosis.
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Search related cases →Original publication on PubMed: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/10920776/