Congenital thoracic kyphosis caused by hemivertebra in a Pug puppy

Abstract

Congenital spine deformation caused by vertebral malformation is reported in different brachycephalic dog breeds, but also in other large dog breeds. The most severe clinical signs are due to spinal cord compression. Depending on localisation of the lesion, clinical signs can manifest differently. A five-month-old pug was brought for autopsy to the Department of Forensic Veterinary Medicine, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Belgrade. The first clinical signs, including general weakness and difficulty to jump appeared when he was three and a half months old. They became more severe until the dog was four months old. Radiography and myelography showed severe kyphosis and spinal cord compression in the T8-T9 region. After euthanasia, an autopsy was performed. Pathomorphological examination showed severe deformation of the spine, kyphosis and a wedge-shaped T8 vertebra. Although, literature data indicates that clinical signs can be latent until five or six months of age, this case shows that even in young puppies, three to four months old, serious clinical signs can be present. This is of great clinical importance, not just for veterinarians, but also for brachycephalic dog owners and breeders.

Kongenitalne deformacije kičme uzrokovane malformacijama na vertebrama javljaju se kod različitih brahicefaličnih rasa, ali se mogu javiti i kod velikih rasa pasa. Najteži klinički simptomi se javljaju usled kompresije kičmene moždine. U zavisnosti od lokalizacije lezije, simptomi se mogu različito manifestovati. Leš mopsa starosti pet meseci donešen je zbog obdukcije na Katedru za sudsku veterinarsku medicinu, Fakulteta veterinarske medicine Univerziteta u Beogradu. Prvi klinički simptomi, u vidu opšte slabosti i poteškoća pri skakanju, javili su se kada je štene bilo staro tri i po meseca. Simptomi su u četvrtom mesecu postali mnogo ozbiljniji. Nativno rendgensko i mijelografsko snimanje pokazalo je uznapredovali stepen kifoze i kompresije kičmene moždine u T8-T9 regionu kičme. Nakon eutanazije, pas je obdukovan. Patomorfološki nalaz ukazao je na ozbiljnu deformaciju kičme, izraženu kifozu i klinast oblik T8 pršljena. Iako literaturni podaci ukazuju da klinički simptomi mogu biti nezapaženi sve do pet ili šest meseci starosti, ovaj slučaj pokazuje da čak kod mlade štenadi, starosti tri do četiri meseca, mogu biti prisutni ozbiljni simptomi. Ova činjenica je od velikog značaja, ne samo za veterinare, već i za odgajivače i vlasnike brahicefaličnih rasa pasa.