Peer-reviewed veterinary case report
Higher risk of gallbladder rupture and death in small dogs
By Jana-Pitre, Kalil & Hennig, Geoffrey S·Published in Canadian journal of veterinary research = Revue canadienne de recherche veterinaire·2025·Department of Small Animal Surgery (Hennig), United States·View original on PubMed →
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Original publication title: Increased risk of gallbladder rupture and death in small-breed dogs with concurrent hypothyroidism or pancreatitis undergoing cholecystectomy for gallbladder mucoceles.
- Species:
- dog
Plain-English summary
A group of small-breed dogs with gallbladder mucoceles (a condition where the gallbladder is filled with a thick, mucoid substance) were studied to see how common gallbladder rupture was and if certain health issues increased the risk. It was found that dogs with hypothyroidism or pancreatitis were significantly more likely to experience gallbladder rupture and death compared to those without these conditions. In fact, nearly 25% of dogs with these health issues suffered a rupture, leading to a high mortality rate. The researchers recommend that surgery to remove the gallbladder should be considered for dogs with these concurrent health problems to reduce the risk of serious complications.
People also search for: small dog gallbladder problems · pancreatitis in dogs treatment · hypothyroidism in dogs symptoms
Abstract
The objectives of this multicenter, retrospective study were to: i) describe the incidence of gallbladder (GB) rupture in small-breed dogs affected by gallbladder mucoceles (GBM) and common endocrinopathies; and ii) determine if certain endocrinopathies were risk factors for GB rupture as they have been for the development of GBM. A total of 371 dogs were included in the study. Medical records from private specialty hospitals were reviewed for small-breed dogs undergoing cholecystectomy for GBM. Forty-seven of 193 dogs (24.4%) with endocrinopathies were diagnosed with GB rupture. Mortality due to GB rupture was 23.9%. Dogs with GB rupture were 3.2 times more likely to die than dogs without rupture (< 0.001). Dogs with overall concurrent endocrinopathies, hypothyroidism, and pancreatitis were 2.5, 4.1, and 2.6 times (= 0.001, 0.001, 0.002) more likely to develop a GB rupture and 2.6, 4.4, and 2.8 times (= 0.008, 0.013, 0.011) more likely to die than dogs without concurrent endocrinopathies. Dogs with hyperadrenocorticism were not associated with a higher risk of GB rupture (= 0.114) or death (= 0.321). It was concluded that elective cholecystectomy should be considered in dogs with GBM and concurrent endocrinopathies, especially hypothyroidism and pancreatitis, to lower the risk of gallbladder rupture and death.
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Search related cases →Original publication on PubMed: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/40170913/