In human, ultrasonography is used to measure the pennation angle in various muscles to identify muscle functions such as force production, and to study alterations of the pennation angle during muscle contraction, hypertrophy, and atrophy. However, assessments of the pennation angle have not yet been conducted in dogs. This study aims to assess the normal pennation angle of the tibialis cranialis muscle in dogs using ultrasound and to detect changes in this angle in dogs with muscular atrophy. Sixty-eight healthy dogs were examined to establish normal values, while 12 ataxic and 12 lame dogs with suspected hindlimb muscle atrophy were also included. The pennation angle was measured using ultrasound at the midpoint between the proximal end of the tibia and the malleolus, measuring the angle between the muscle bundle and the deep aponeurosis. To confirm the significance between the 5 breeds and to identify a difference between normal and atrophied muscles, statistical analysis was conducted. The study found no significant difference in pennation angle between breeds, with mean values (± standard deviation) of 4.97° (± 1.88) in neutral, 7.25° (± 2.68) in flexion, and 3.31° (± 1.33) in extension positions. Decrease of the pennation angle was identified in muscle atrophy and the flexion position was determined to be the most appropriate for pennation angle measurement of tibialis cranialis muscle. We recommend considering the pennation angle as a valuable indicator of muscle health in dogs, as it demonstrates significant potential for diagnosing and monitoring muscular conditions.

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the applicability of virtual reality simulation after experience of dental caries diagnosis for dental students before exposing to clinical pediatric practice. A pediatric patient model of a five-year-old child with primary dentition was developed and a caries model that is amenable to VR(virtual reality) diagnosis was organized and set-up. The dental student’s were allowed to use the simulated model for fifteen minutes and their experiences were evaluated using a self-reported questionnaire to evaluate presence and usability of this application. Overall, virtual presence and appearance area of the simulation were highly scored. The result indicates that the VR model has no significant difference from the actual clinical caries regardless of grade of students, gender and VR experience. If the prototype is continuously advanced, its applicability in dental education will increase.

Foreign bodies in the maxillary sinus are rare and mostly of traumatic origin. These foreign bodies result in pain, bleeding and infection and are immediately removed in most cases. Sometimes the foreign body without serious symptoms can remain for several years without treatment. However, the prognosis of foreign bodies in the paranasal sinuses can be severe. Therefore, regardless of the symptoms present, it seems worthwhile to remove the foreign body from the paranasal sinuses in order to prevent any possibility of further complications. The authors report a case of foreign body occurring in maxilla and maxillary sinus without symptoms for 25 years with related literatures.
Foreign Bodies ; Hemorrhage ; Maxilla ; Maxillary Sinus ; Paranasal Sinuses ; Prognosis

Background: Intradural-intramedullary intervertebral disc extrusion (IIVDE) is a rare condition of intervertebral disc disease. However, the diagnosis of IIVDE is challenging because the prognosis and imaging characteristics are poorly characterized. Objectives: We aimed to describe the clinical and imaging characteristics of tentatively diagnosed IIVDE in dogs to assess the prognostic utility of neurological grade and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) findings. Methods: Twenty dogs were included in this retrospective cohort study. Results: Nonchondrodystrophic breeds (n = 16) were more predisposed than chondrodystrophic breeds. Most dogs showed acute onset of clinical signs. Neurological examination at admission showed predominant non-ambulatory paraparesis (n = 9); paresis (n = 16) was confirmed more frequently than paralysis (n = 4). Follow-up neurological examination results were only available for 11 dogs, ten of whom showed neurological improvement and 8 showed successful outcomes at 1 month. The characteristic MRI findings include thoracic vertebra (T)2 hyperintense, T1 hypointense, intramedullary linear tracts with reduced disc volume, and cleft of the annulus fibrosus. None of the MRI measurements were significantly correlated with neurological grade at admission. Neurological grade did not differ according to the presence of parenchymal hemorrhage, parenchymal contrast enhancement, and meningeal contrast enhancement. Neurological grades at admission showed a statistical correlation with those observed at the 1-month follow-up (r = 0.814, p = 0.02). Conclusions IIVDE is a rare form of disc extrusion commonly experienced after physical activity or trauma and most frequently affects the cranial-cervical and thoracolumbar regions of nonchondrodystrophic dog breeds. Neurological score at admission emerged as a more useful prognostic indicator than MRI findings in dogs with suspected IIVDE.

Unenhanced echocardiography (UE), commonly used in veterinary practice, is limited by left ventricular (LV) foreshortening and observer dependency. Contrast echocardiography (CE) was used to compare two-dimensional (2D) LV measurements made using UE and 256-row multi-detector computed tomography (MDCT) as a reference standard. Seven healthy beagle dogs were evaluated in this study. Measurements obtained using CE, including LV wall thickness, internal diameter, and longitudinal and transverse length, were significantly greater than those obtained using UE. Measurements of LV internal dimension in diastole (LVIDd) and systole (LVIDs) were significantly larger with CE compared UE. Regardless of the cardiac cycle, LV longitudinal (LVLd and LVLs) and transverse diameter (LVTDd and LVTDs) measurements were significantly different with CE and approximated values from MDCT. Among automatically calculated parameters, LV end-systolic volume and the relative wall thickness were significantly different between UE and CE. In CE, the correlation coefficients of 4 major parameters (r = 0.87 in LVIDd; 0.91 in LVIDs; 0.87 in LVLd; and 0.81 in LVLs) showed higher values compared to the UE (r = 0.68 in LVIDd, 0.71 in LVIDs, 0.69 in LVLd, and 0.35 in LVLs). Inter-observer agreement was highest for MDCT and higher for CE than UE. In conclusion, CE is more accurate and reproducible than UE in assessing 2D LV measurements and can overcome the limitations of UE including LV foreshortening and high observer dependency.
Animals ; Diastole ; Dogs ; Echocardiography ; Multidetector Computed Tomography ; Systole

A 6-year-old Dachshund was presented with acute, non-localized pain without neurological dysfunction. Radiography revealed multiple calcifications of intervertebral discs and narrowing of disc space in the thoracolumbar region. Computed tomography and magnetic resonance imaging revealed calcified disc-like material entrapped in the left extraforaminal area and showed a displaced nerve root. Fenestration and removal of the extruded disc material were performed in a routine manner. Histopathological examination showed degenerative disc materials with severe calcification both in the nucleus pulposus and around the annulus fibrosis. Based on imaging, surgical, and histopathologic results, the dog was diagnosed with far lateral lumbar disc extrusion.
Animals ; Child ; Dogs ; Fibrosis ; Humans ; Intervertebral Disc ; Magnetic Resonance Imaging ; Radiography

The purpose of this study was to examine dental complications and to evaluate the effects of initial treatment age, treatment modalities, and treatment duration on the disorder after radiation and chemotherapy in pediatric cancer patients.For 93 children with clinical and radiographic data, the number of teeth, the morphology of teeth, the shape of the roots, and development status of the dentition were evaluated.Dental development disorders were found in 61.3% of the children. The mostly found abnormality was root deformity with the prevalence of 31.2%. In children submitted to the therapy before the age of 6, the number of missing teeth (p = 0.029) and microdontia (p = 0.003) were greater compared to the children who started to receive the treatment after the age of 6. The combination of radiation and chemotherapy showed significantly greater incidences of missing teeth (p = 0.030), microdontia (p = 0.046), and root deformity (p = 0.009) when compared with the sole application of chemotherapy. When the children were submitted to anticancer therapy for 18 months or longer duration, greater number of missing teeth (p = 0.032), microdontia (p = 0.011), root deformity (p = 0.025), and total number of teeth affected (p = 0.036) were observed compared with duration less than 18 months.The number of dental abnormalities increased when the children were treated at earlier ages, with combination of radiation and chemotherapy, and for longer period of time.
Child ; Congenital Abnormalities ; Dentition ; Drug Therapy ; Humans ; Incidence ; Prevalence ; Tooth

No abstract available.
Axons ; Reflex ; Sweating, Gustatory

This study was performed to identify the relationships between hepatic vein (HV) measurements, including flow velocity and waveform, using pulsed-wave (PW) Doppler ultrasonography, and the severity of tricuspid regurgitation (TR) in dogs. The study included 22 dogs with TR and 7 healthy dogs. The TR group was subdivided into 3 groups according to TR jet profile obtained by echocardiography. The hepatic venous waveform was obtained and classified into 3 types. A variety of HV measurements, including the maximal velocities of the atrial systolic, systolic (S), end ventricular systolic, and diastolic (D) waves and the ratio of the S- and D- wave velocities (S/D ratio), were acquired. TR severity was significantly correlated with the S- (r = −0.380, p = 0.042) and D- (r = 0.468, p = 0.011) wave velocities and the S/D ratio (r = −0.747, p < 0.001). Receiver operating characteristic curve analysis revealed the highest sensitivity and specificity for the S/D ratio (89% and 75%, respectively) at a threshold of 0.97 with excellent accuracy (AUC = 0.911, p < 0.001). In conclusion, PW Doppler ultrasonography of the HV can be used to identify the presence of significant TR and to classify TR severity in dogs.
Animals ; Dogs* ; Echocardiography ; Hepatic Veins* ; ROC Curve ; Sensitivity and Specificity ; Tricuspid Valve Insufficiency* ; Ultrasonography, Doppler

This study aimed to evaluate the nasopharyngeal and oropharyngeal dimensions of the patients with skeletal class II division 1 or division 2 patterns during the pre-peak, peak, and post-peak growth periods for comparison with a skeletal class I control group (79 for pre-peak, 40 for peak, 40 for post-peak). Total 159 lateral cephalograms (70 for skeletal class I, 51 for skeletal class II, division 1, and 38 for skeletal class II, division 2) were selected.The growth of anteroposterior dimension of the pharyngeal airway were statistically significant among growth periods. The dimension for the nasopharyngeal and oropharyngeal airway space was the smallest in the division 1 skeletal class II group followed by class II division 2 and skeletal class I.
Adolescent ; Humans