Veterinary Radiology

January’s gathering of wildlife and zoo veterinarians had a great collection of interesting cases. Here are some of the highlights.

Mature Flamingo, found unable to rise

This flamingo did not have any history of disease and was up to date on vaccinations. His initial blood work was fairly normal. Radiographs showed increased opacity of the soft tissues including great vessels in the thorax, and mineralization of the kidneys. Later blood work showed increased renal values fitting with the radiographic signs of renal mineralization. Differentials could include primary or secondary hyperparathyroidism or gout. Post mortem examination confirmed crystals within the renal parenchyma and mineralization of vessels. Final results are pending.

Flying Fox with mass on mandible

Aspirates of this soft tissue mass were not conclusive. Dental radiographs with very nice detail showed a lucency at the apex of the left canine tooth in the mandible, indicating a periapical abscess.

Mature Sea Lion with open mouth

The Sea Lion had bilateral mandibular fractures located in the ramus of the mandibles. The temporomandibular joints were not directly involved. The fractures had some remodeling of the edges and were relatively well aligned. They were most likely a week or two old, and the massive masticatory muscles had kept the fractures from greater displacement. The animal was able to close its mouth and to eat. He did very well with supportive care. The group speculated on the type of trauma that would induce this type of injury, possibly an impact from the ventral or caudoventral area.

Harbor Seal pup with fractured radius

This pup had a fractured radius with several fragments. Radiographs over a period of 3 months showed progressive healing of the more proximal portion of the fracture, with incorporation of a fragment into the distal callus. This subsequently formed a mineral opacity sequestrum surrounded by a symmetric involucrum (radiolucent line around the sequestrum). The sequestrum dissolved completely over this period without surgical debridement.

River Otter found in parking lot

Thoracic radiographs showed a generalized cardiomegaly. The thorax of the otter was shaped like a feline thorax, and the heart appeared to be approximately twice normal size. The lungs and remainder of the thorax were normal. An unknown protozoal parasite was found in the muscles and myocardium. Final speciation was pending.

Are you a student or intern deciding what specialty to choose? This article from the CMAJ explains how to rate your goo tolerance on the GROSSS scale.

Radiology

Practically goo-free. You get to sit around in a sterile office all day looking at pictures of goo, but you never have to touch it.

The keynote speakers at the ACVR meeting all had very interesting perspectives on the future of imaging. Here is a short summary of the speakers with some links to further information.

Michael Garwood from the University of Minnesota Presented “Beyond anatomy: Imaging molecules, function and disease using advanced magnetic resonance technologies”. Some of his areas of interest include using MR spectroscopy to diagnose breast cancer and monitor response to treatment, and functional MR of the brain.

Fleming Forsberg from the Thomas Jefferson University Hospital in Philadelphia gave a very entertaining talk entitled “Animal models for ultrasound contrast imaging research”, and touched on many techniques including recent advances in contrast harmonic imaging.

Chick Weisse from the University of Pennsylvania spoke about “IR or the OR”, and advances in veterinary interventional radiology. This field has many applications such as treatment of portosystemic shunts and collapsing trachea.

Joseph Hornak from the Rochester Institute of Technology gave a very nice talk on various MR topics. He has also written an online book entitled “The basics of MRI“. He spoke about advances in coil design and image acquisition that would significantly shorten the time needed to complete a study.