Linn Kathleen A, Templer Alison S, Paul-Murphy Joanne R, O'Brien Robert T, Hartup Barry K, Langenberg Julia A
School of Veterinary Medicine, University of Wisconsin, 2015 Linden Drive, Madison, Wisconsin 53706, USA.
J Zoo Wildl Med. 2003 Jun;34(2):144-52. doi: 10.1638/02-008.
Tendon ossification in the crus and tarsometatarsal regions of cranes makes ultrasonography difficult everywhere except for joints, where ossification is absent. Normal ultrasonographic anatomy of the adult Florida sandhill crane (Grus canadensis pratensis) intertarsal joint is described on the basis of ultrasonography that was performed on the limbs of a cadaver, which were dissected and cross-sectioned subsequently, to correlate ultrasonographic images with anatomic structures. Intertarsal joints of five normal sandhill cranes and two cranes with known intertarsal abnormalities were then imaged bilaterally in transverse and sagittal planes. Ultrasonographic imaging can be used to evaluate the soft-tissue structures on the dorsal and plantar aspects of the intertarsal joint of cranes, and it is a useful adjunct to physical and radiographic examination for localizing injuries to this area.
