Peer-reviewed veterinary case report
Using thyroid ultrasound to tell hypothyroid dogs from sick dogs
By Reese, Sven et al.·Published in Journal of veterinary internal medicine·2005·Institute of Veterinary Anatomy, Germany·View original on PubMed →
PetCaseFinder translated the abstract of this peer-reviewed paper into plain English so pet owners can read it. We do not publish original research — every detail traces back to the citation above. How we work →
Original publication title: Thyroid sonography as an effective tool to discriminate between euthyroid sick and hypothyroid dogs.
- Species:
- dog
Plain-English summary
A group of dogs with suspected thyroid issues underwent ultrasound examinations to help determine if they had hypothyroidism or were simply sick but still had normal thyroid function. The ultrasound measurements showed that dogs with hypothyroidism had significantly different thyroid sizes and characteristics compared to healthy dogs and those with euthyroid sick syndrome (a condition where dogs appear sick but have normal thyroid levels). This study found that thyroid ultrasound can be a useful tool for veterinarians to accurately diagnose hypothyroidism in dogs.
People also search for: dog thyroid problems symptoms · hypothyroidism in dogs treatment · dog ultrasound thyroid results
Abstract
The diagnosis of canine hypothyroidism and its differentiation from euthyroid sick syndrome still is a major diagnostic challenge. In this study, ultrasonography was shown to be an effective tool for the investigation of thyroid gland diseases. Healthy control dogs (n = 87), dogs with euthyroid sick syndrome (n = 26), thyroglobulin autoantibody-positive (TgAA-positive, n = 30) hypothyroid dogs, and TgAA-negative (n = 23) hypothyroid dogs were examined by thyroid ultrasonography. Maximal cross sectional area (MCSA), thyroid volume, and echogenicity were measured. Statistical analysis identified highly significant (P < .001) differences between euthyroid and hypothyroid dogs both in thyroid volume and in MCSA, whereas no significant differences in thyroid size were detected between healthy euthyroid dogs and dogs with euthyroid sick syndrome. In euthyroid and euthyroid sick dogs, parenchymal echotexture was homogeneous and hyperechoic, whereas relative thyroid echogenicity of both TgAA-positive and TgAA-negative hypothyroid dogs was significantly lower (P < .001). When using arbitrarily chosen cutoff values for relative thyroid volume, MCSA, and echogenicity, thyroid volume especially was found to have highly specific predictive value for canine hypothyroidism. In summary, the data reveal that thyroid sonography is an effective ancillary diagnostic tool to differentiate between canine hypothyroidism and euthyroid sick syndrome.
Find similar cases for your pet
PetCaseFinder finds other peer-reviewed reports of pets with the same symptoms, plus a plain-English summary of what was tried across them.
Search related cases →Original publication on PubMed: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/16095165/