Peer-reviewed veterinary case report
Outcomes for 21 dogs treated for portocaval liver shunts
By Swieton, Natalie et al.·Published in Veterinary surgery : VS·2025·Interventional Radiology and Endoscopy Service, United States·View original on PubMed →
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Original publication title: Outcome of 21 dogs treated for the portocaval subtype of extrahepatic portosystemic shunts.
- Species:
- dog
Plain-English summary
A group of 21 dogs with a serious liver condition called portocaval extrahepatic portosystemic shunts (PC-EHPSS) were treated either with surgery or medical management. The dogs, mostly under 12 kg, showed signs of illness around 5 months old. After treatment, all the dogs that had surgery were still alive after about 3 years, while 6 out of 14 dogs treated with medication survived. The dogs that had surgery generally had better blood test results and overall health compared to those treated with medication. This suggests that surgery may lead to better outcomes for dogs with this condition.
People also search for: dog liver shunt treatment · portosystemic shunt surgery outcome · dog liver disease survival rate
Abstract
OBJECTIVE: To assess outcomes of dogs with side-to-side portocaval extrahepatic portosystemic shunts (PC-EHPSS) and poor portal perfusion to the liver treated with medical management alone (MM) or surgical attenuation (SA). STUDY DESIGN: Multi-institutional retrospective study. ANIMALS: A total of 21 dogs with PC-EHPSS (14/21 MM and 7/21 SA). METHODS: Medical records were reviewed, and data was collected on dogs <12 kg with PC-EHPSS treated with MM or SA between June 2008 to June 2021. Signalment, clinical signs, postoperative complications, bloodwork values, long-term clinical outcome, survival, and owner reported quality of life were recorded. RESULTS: Of 21 dogs included, 10 were mixed breeds and 14 were females. Median age at time of presenting clinical signs was 163 days. At final follow-up examination (median 1119 days), all SA and 6/14 MM dogs were alive, with a median survival time of 2138 days following treatment onset. In surviving MM dogs, outcome was fair in 3/6 and poor in 3/6. In SA dogs with long-term follow-up, outcome was fair in 5/6, and poor in 1/6. A greater proportion of SA dogs had improved bloodwork parameter values at final follow-up examination, and the mean relative change in final bloodwork values was higher when compared to MM dogs. CONCLUSION: These findings demonstrate that SA has improved clinical outcomes to MM for PC-EHPSS; however, SA clinical outcomes appear worse than those previously reported for other EHPSS. CLINICAL SIGNIFICANCE: This information may have implications for expected outcomes in other EHPSS subtypes associated with severely diminished portal perfusion.
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Search related cases →Original publication on PubMed: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/39474759/