Peer-reviewed veterinary case report
Surgery outcomes for dogs with severe spinal disc disease and no deep
By Laitinen, Outi M & Puerto, David A·Published in Acta veterinaria Scandinavica·2005·University of Pennsylvania, United States·View original on PubMed →
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Original publication title: Surgical decompression in dogs with thoracolumbar intervertebral disc disease and loss of deep pain perception: A retrospective study of 46 cases.
- Species:
- dog
Plain-English summary
A group of 46 dogs with severe back problems caused by intervertebral disc disease (a condition where discs in the spine bulge or rupture) and loss of deep pain perception underwent surgery to relieve pressure on the spine. About 41% of these dogs showed improvement after surgery, especially those who had lost deep pain perception for less than 24 hours before the operation. Dogs that regained deep pain perception within two weeks after surgery had a much higher chance of recovery. This suggests that early intervention is crucial for better outcomes in dogs with this condition.
People also search for: dog back surgery recovery · intervertebral disc disease in dogs · signs of deep pain perception in dogs
Abstract
The case details and outcome after surgical decompression of 46 dogs with thoracolumbar intervertebral disc disease with loss of deep pain perception prior to surgery were reviewed. Nineteen dogs (41.3%) recovered with a median follow-up period of 12.5 months. Recovery was defined as an ambulatory paraparesis, or better, with urinary and fecal continence. There was a better outcome in dogs with loss of deep pain for less than 24 hours prior to surgery (19/41; 46.3% recovered) than in dogs without deep pain perception for more than 24 hours (0/5; 0% recovered). Dogs with deep pain perception present at two weeks postoperatively had significantly higher success rate (8/12; 66.7% recovered) than dogs without deep pain perception at this time period (1/10; 10.0% recovered). The return of deep pain perception by two weeks postoperatively can be a useful positive prognostic indicator.
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Search related cases →Original publication on PubMed: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/16108215/