Retrospective case control study of pet ferrets with cystine urolithiasis in Quebec, Canada : epidemiological and clinical features

Objective: To describe epidemiological and clinical features of cystine urolithiasis in pet ferrets. Methods: Retrospective case control study on medical records from four private clinics and one teaching hospital for pet ferrets diagnosed with cystine urolithiasis confirmed by spectrophotometry presented between July 2014 and July 2019 in Quebec, Canada; these cases were then compared to a reference population of 210 ferrets (controls) presented at the same facilities over the same timeframe. Results: Among the 36 identified cases, most affected ferrets were neutered males (32/36, 89%) and the mean age at presentation was 1.8 (± 1.0 standard deviation) year. Grain-free diets of six different brands were offered for at least three weeks prior to the presentation to 34/36 (94%) of the included cases. The ferrets that developed cystine urolithiasis were 57.9 times (Odds ratio [OR], 95% Confidence interval [95% CI]: 11.0, 304.8) more likely to receive a grain-free diet compared to the reference population. No significant difference in the values for the energy, protein, cysteine, and methionine contents were detected between the grainfree and the cereal-based diets offered to these pet ferrets. Among ferrets with uroliths, those with urethral calculi were 4.7 times (OR, 95% CI: 2.1, 10.4) more likely to develop an acute urinary tract obstruction. Conclusion: Although a definitive causation could not be drawn solely from these clinical cases, this case control study highlights a possible nutritional aetiology in the complex pathogenesis of cystine urolithiasis in ferrets

Atlas anatomique par IRM de la tortue de Floride (Trachemys scripta (Schoepff, 1792))

Poser un diagnostic sur un chélonien malade se révèle souvent très complexe. La carapace limite l'accès aux structures internes et freine l'efficacité des examens complémentaires. Grâce au développement de techniques médicales plus pointues en médecine vétérinaire depuis quelques années, il est désormais possible de vaincre ce handicap. L'IRM permet, en effet, une visualisation de la majeure partie des structures internes des chéloniens. Peu de données existent à l'heure actuelle sur cette technique prometteuse. Le but de ce travail est de fournir un atlas de référence légendé des structures internes de chéloniens sains sur coupes sagittales, transversales et coronales par IRM, pour servir de modèle de comparaison aux images obtenues sur des sujets malades. La première partie de ce travail regroupe les particularités anatomiques des chéloniens, suivie dans une seconde partie par un bref rappel du principe de l'imagerie par résonnance magnétique. La troisième et dernière partie présente le protocole de l'étude expérimentale et l atlas complet ainsi que quelques images de cas pathologiques.TOULOUSE-EN Vétérinaire (315552301) / SudocNANTES-Ecole Nat.Vétérinaire (441092302) / SudocSudocFranceF

Ventricular septal defect and congestive heart failure in a common degu (Octodon degus)

We report a case of ventricular septal defect causing congestive heart failure in a two-year-old, male common degu (Octodon degus). The patient presented for anorexia and dental disease, and a grade 4/6 holosystolic cardiac murmur was detected on physical exam. Thoracic radiographs showed cardiomegaly and a diffuse interstitial pulmonary pattern, consistent with congestive heart failure. Echocardiography was supportive of a perimembranous ventricular septal defect exhibiting low-velocity left-to-right shunting, and biatrial enlargement. These diagnoses were confirmed on post-mortem exam, along with pulmonary edema and cardiomyocyte hypertrophy, degeneration, and regeneration. This is the first published account of a ventricular septal defect and congestive heart failure in a degu