La Rosa Claudia, Morabito Simona, Carloni Andrea, Davini Tommaso, Remelli Carlotta, Specchi Swan, Bernardini Marco
AniCura I Portoni Rossi Veterinary Hospital, Bologna, Italy.
Antech Imaging Services, Fountain Valley, CA, United States.
Front Vet Sci. 2023 Nov 23;10:1302418. doi: 10.3389/fvets.2023.1302418. eCollection 2023.
Intervertebral disc protrusion (IVDP) is a neurological disorder commonly observed at the lumbosacral junction of old, medium-to-large breeds, non-chondrodystrophic dogs. Although uncommon, lumbosacral IVDP can also be seen in chondrodystrophic dogs, among them French Bulldogs (FBs) and could be associated with congenital vertebral malformations in this breed. This study aims to evaluate the prevalence, clinical features, and MRI characteristics of lumbosacral IVDP and congenital vertebral malformations in FBs diagnosed with thoracic or lumbar intervertebral disc extrusion (IVDE) and to evaluate the possible interference of the neurologic deficits related to chronic IVDP on neurological examination.
This is a single-center, retrospective case series. A search for FBs diagnosed with IVDE affecting the thoracic or lumbar regions is done on the database of the AniCura I Portoni Rossi Veterinary Hospital (Zola Predosa, Bologna, Italy). Eligible dogs have a complete medical report and a high-field MRI of the lumbosacral junction. MRIs of the lumbosacral junction are evaluated to determine the position of IVDP, cranial intervertebral foraminal stenosis, and signs of nerve root involvement. Radiographs, when available, are reviewed to identify the presence of lumbosacral congenital vertebral malformations.
Eighty FBs are included in the study. The prevalence of lumbosacral IVDP among FBs is 91.3%. Among FBs with lumbosacral IVDP, 45.0% show concurrent cranial intervertebral foraminal stenosis, 28.8% exhibit concurrent nerve root involvement, 56.2% appear to be asymptomatic for lumbosacral changes, while 15.1% manifest a decreased or absent withdrawal reflex as a supposed consequence of chronic lumbosacral IVDP. Congenital vertebral malformations are detected in 10 dogs.
The results of this study support the hypothesis that lumbosacral IVDP is frequent in FBs presenting with thoracic or lumbar IVDE. In over half the dogs lumbosacral IVDP appears to be asymptomatic; however, in other cases, chronic lumbosacral IVDP seems to cause neurological deficits that may lead to erroneous localization of acute IVDE, representing a confounding factor for clinicians.
椎间盘突出症（IVDP）是一种常见于中老年、中大品种、非软骨发育不良犬的腰骶部的神经系统疾病。虽然不常见，但腰骶部IVDP也可见于软骨发育不良犬，包括法国斗牛犬（FBs），且可能与该品种的先天性椎体畸形有关。本研究旨在评估诊断为胸段或腰段椎间盘挤出（IVDE）的FBs中腰骶部IVDP和先天性椎体畸形的患病率、临床特征及MRI特征，并评估与慢性IVDP相关的神经功能缺损对神经学检查的可能干扰。
这是一项单中心回顾性病例系列研究。在AniCura I Portoni Rossi兽医医院（意大利博洛尼亚佐拉-普雷多萨）的数据库中搜索诊断为影响胸段或腰段的IVDE的FBs。符合条件的犬有完整的病历报告和腰骶部的高场MRI。对腰骶部MRI进行评估，以确定IVDP的位置、椎间孔狭窄及神经根受累情况。如有X光片，进行回顾以确定腰骶部先天性椎体畸形的存在。
80只FBs纳入本研究。FBs中腰骶部IVDP的患病率为91.3%。在患有腰骶部IVDP的FBs中，45.0%同时存在椎间孔狭窄，28.8%表现为神经根受累，56.2%腰骶部改变无症状，而15.1%表现为退缩反射减弱或消失，推测是慢性腰骶部IVDP的结果。10只犬检测到先天性椎体畸形。
本研究结果支持以下假设：患有胸段或腰段IVDE的FBs中腰骶部IVDP很常见。超过半数的犬腰骶部IVDP似乎无症状；然而，在其他情况下，慢性腰骶部IVDP似乎会导致神经功能缺损，可能导致急性IVDE定位错误，对临床医生来说是一个混杂因素。
