Peer-reviewed veterinary case report
Vacuum gas in dog hip joints with degenerative disease on CT scan
By Kanthavichit, Kanokporn et al.·Published in BMC veterinary research·2020·Department of Veterinary Surgery·View original on PubMed →
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Original publication title:  Evaluation of vacuum phenomenon in dogs with coxofemoral degenerative joint disease using computed tomography.
- Species:
- dog
Plain-English summary
A group of dogs with hip pain was examined using advanced imaging (CT scans) to look for a condition called the vacuum phenomenon, which is the presence of gas in the hip joint. The study found that this condition was more common in large breed dogs with degenerative joint disease (DJD), affecting about half of them. In total, 282 dogs were studied, and the vacuum phenomenon was identified in 25 of them, mostly in the area of the hip joint called the acetabulum. This suggests that if your large dog has hip problems, the presence of gas in the joint could indicate more severe joint disease.
People also search for: dog hip pain treatment · vacuum phenomenon in dogs · large breed dog hip problems · degenerative joint disease in dogs
Abstract
BACKGROUND: Degenerative joint disease (DJD) is a common orthopedic lesion in the coxofemoral joint of canine patients. Concurrent with the sign of degeneration, the vacuum phenomenon (VP), or intra-articular gas, has been observed in several locations in both human and canine patients. A cadaveric study described VP in small breed dogs without DJD but with hip laxity. However, none of the canine VP reports mentioned coxofemoral DJD. Therefore, the aim of this retrospective study was to describe the distribution of coxofemoral VP revealed on computed tomography (CT) imaging in canine patients with DJD. RESULTS: A total of 282 dogs (564 coxofemoral joints), comprising 142 small, 85 large, and 55 medium breeds, were included in the present study. DJD was found in 31.02% of all dogs. The incidence of DJD was highest in large breed dogs (50%), followed by medium (31.81%) and small (19.36%) breed dogs. In addition, VP was detected with CT using the pulmonary window in 31 joints of 25 dogs that received a diagnosis of hip degenerative disease. VP was found most frequently at the laterodorsal area of the acetabulum. The incidences of VP in large, small, and medium breed dogs were 35.94%, 17.14% and 8.33%, respectively. The presence of coxofemoral VP was significantly and positively correlated with DJD (odds ratio = 17.58, 95% CI 2.32-133.42). CONCLUSIONS: The presence of coxofemoral joint DJD and VP was more likely to be detected in large breed dogs, especially in those with established DJD. CT is an advanced diagnostic imaging modality that can be used to reveal VP lesions, most of which are reported at the laterodorsal acetabulum. Further studies, including comparisons of different patient positions, may reveal more information regarding coxofemoral VP.
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Search related cases →Original publication on PubMed: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/32762687/