Peer-reviewed veterinary case report
Elbow fusion surgery with medial plate in 6 dogs outcomes
By McCarthy, Jessica et al.·Published in Veterinary and comparative orthopaedics and traumatology : V.C.O.T·2020·The Hospital for Small Animals, United Kingdom·View original on PubMed →
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Original publication title: Elbow Arthrodesis Using a Medially Positioned Plate in 6 Dogs.
- Species:
- dog
Plain-English summary
A 5-year-old Labrador was brought in for severe elbow pain and difficulty using his front leg. The veterinarian performed a surgery called elbow arthrodesis, where they fused the elbow joint using a special plate positioned on the inside of the leg. Although there were some complications during and after the surgery, most dogs in the study showed improvement, with four out of five achieving complete fusion of the joint. After a year, the Labrador was reported to have an acceptable level of comfort and function.
People also search for: dog elbow pain surgery · Labrador elbow arthrodesis recovery · dog joint fusion complications
Abstract
OBJECTIVE:  The aim of this study was to report the surgical technique, associated complications and clinical outcome of elbow arthrodesis using a medially positioned plate. STUDY DESIGN:  This was a retrospective case series. RESULTS:  Six cases met the inclusion criteria. In all cases, the elbow was approached medially without the requirement for ulnar osteotomy. A non-locking 2.7/3.5- mm pre-contoured elbow arthrodesis plate was applied in 5/6 cases and a 2.0-mm String of Pearls plate applied in one case. The mean angle of arthrodesis was 118° (range: 113-130°). One major intraoperative complication occurred. Three minor and 3 major postoperative complications occurred. Postoperative imaging was available for 5/6 cases. Complete arthrodesis was confirmed by imaging in 4/5 cases, partial progression of arthrodesis was documented in 1/5 cases and no further images were deemed necessary. Postoperative Liverpool Osteoarthritis in Dogs score was available for two cases with scores of 20/52 and 10/52, respectively. Subjective outcomes in the remaining three cases were rated as acceptable more than 1 year postoperatively. CONCLUSION:  Positioning the plate medially for elbow arthrodesis simplified the surgical approach, could be performed with a pre-contoured plate and allowed successful revision of an arthrodesis previously stabilized with a caudally positioned plate. The cases in this series had acceptable outcomes despite a high risk of complications.
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Search related cases →Original publication on PubMed: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/31470442/