7 month old English Bulldog with acute thoracic limb lameness after having leg stuck in a fence three weeks previously. What are your findings?
Findings
- Left carpus: There is marked swelling surrounding the left carpus, most pronounced on the medial aspect. There is a small osseous fragment medial to the radiocarpal bone with an associated radiolucent defect. Stressed projections were performed to assess carpal stability. No abnormal laxity was noted.
- Right carpus: Comparison stressed views show no abnormal laxity.
Diagnosis
- Radial carpal chip fracture with soft tissue swelling but no evidence of carpal laxity.
- Cytology and culture of the joint fluid was performed to rule out sepsis, and was negative.
Hi there, please forgive my ignorance but .. is it an observer issue (ongoing!) at my end that has the distal physes of the left radius and ulna appearing to be at a different stage to those in the right limb? I wondered if the distal ulnar physis especially is closing prematurely? Would love further direction on this!
Thanks for an amazing resource as always, it’s an enormous help.
Good question! I think what we are seeing is a diffuse loss of bone quality secondary to the lameness, making the physis appear less distinct. It still appears open. We rechecked this dog over two months and he did not develop premature closure or an angular limb deformity.
Thanks so much for the feedback and progress update Dr Zwingenberger. Glad the pup is doing well!