Peer-reviewed veterinary case report
Pneumothorax in dogs after porcupine quill injuries cases 2001-2022
By Sevy, Julia J et al.·Published in Journal of the American Veterinary Medical Association·2023·Department of Clinical Sciences, United States·View original on PubMed →
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Original publication title: Porcupine quilling-associated pneumothorax in dogs: 25 cases (2001-2022).
- Species:
- dog
Plain-English summary
A group of 25 large-breed dogs developed breathing problems after encounters with porcupines, leading to a condition called pneumothorax, where air leaks into the chest cavity. Most of these dogs needed surgery to remove porcupine quills that had migrated into their lungs, while a few were able to recover without surgery. All dogs survived their hospital stay, but some required additional procedures later to remove quills that continued to cause issues. Overall, the prognosis for these dogs after treatment was good, especially with proper surgical intervention.
People also search for: dog breathing problems porcupine quills · pneumothorax treatment in dogs · dog surgery for quill removal
Abstract
OBJECTIVE: To describe the clinical outcome of dogs that developed pneumothorax after an encounter with a porcupine. ANIMALS: 25 client-owned dogs from 2 practices in New England. PROCEDURES: The medical records were searched for those of dogs that underwent care for porcupine quilling-associated pneumothorax (PQAP) between August 1, 2001, and October 15, 2023. Dogs were all large-breed dogs or large mixed-breed dogs and most frequently had clinical signs associated with pneumothorax, including labored breathing and tachypnea. RESULTS: No cases occurred in winter months. Diagnostic imaging was useful for identifying pneumothorax, but not for localizing quills. Twenty-one of the 25 dogs underwent median sternotomy for quill removal, with quills found in lung tissue of 19 dogs. Two dogs had no intrathoracic quills identified at thoracotomy, but residual quills were identified in the intercostal muscles. Four dogs were discharged without surgery after apparent resolution of the pneumothorax. All dogs survived to hospital discharge; however, 5 dogs required subsequent quill removal from ongoing quill migration. CLINICAL RELEVANCE: Porcupine quillings may result in traumatic pneumothorax associated with quill migration. Following quill removal, monitoring for the development of a pneumothorax is advised. Surgical removal of quills from the lungs has a good prognosis.
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Search related cases →Original publication on PubMed: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/36701222/