Peer-reviewed veterinary case report
Dog with left wrist bone death causing lameness treated by surgery
By Harris, Karen P & Langley-Hobbs, Sorrel J·Published in Journal of the American Veterinary Medical Association·2013·Department of Veterinary Medicine, United Kingdom·View original on PubMed →
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Original publication title: Idiopathic ischemic necrosis of an accessory carpal bone in a dog.
- Species:
- dog
Plain-English summary
A 6-year-old mixed-breed dog was brought in for lameness in her left front leg that had been worsening over six weeks. X-rays showed damage to a small bone in her wrist, and a biopsy confirmed that the bone was dying due to a lack of blood flow, a condition known as idiopathic ischemic necrosis. The veterinarian performed surgery to remove the damaged bone and stabilize the wrist, which allowed the dog to recover well and live another four years without further issues related to her wrist.
People also search for: dog front leg lameness · mixed-breed dog wrist pain · treatment for dog carpal bone problems
Abstract
CASE DESCRIPTION: A 6-year-old neutered female mixed-breed dog was evaluated because of a 6-week history of left forelimb lameness that varied in severity. CLINICAL FINDINGS: Radiography revealed expansile and lytic changes of the left accessory carpal bone (ACB). Results of histologic evaluation of ACB core biopsy specimens indicated areas of bone necrosis. The entire left ACB was excised and submitted for histologic evaluation; results confirmed a diagnosis of idiopathic ischemic necrosis. TREATMENT AND OUTCOME: Left pancarpal arthrodesis was performed to treat carpal hyperextension and persistent lameness. The dog had an excellent functional outcome with no other problems related to the carpus until its death 4 years later, further decreasing suspicion that the problem was attributable to an undetected neoplasm or bacterial or fungal osteomyelitis. CLINICAL RELEVANCE: The radiographic and histologic findings for the dog of this report were similar to previously reported findings for dogs with ischemic femoral head necrosis and humans with ischemic carpal (pisiform or lunate bone) necrosis. The etiology of the ischemic ACB necrosis in this dog was not determined. To the authors' knowledge, this is the first report of a dog with idiopathic ischemic ACB necrosis. Idiopathic ischemic necrosis should be included as a differential diagnosis for dogs with lameness and destructive and expansile ACB radiographic lesions. An excellent functional outcome may be attained by means of ACB excision and pancarpal arthrodesis.
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Search related cases →Original publication on PubMed: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/24299546/