Morphology of the digital sheath in horses

Introduction: The digital sheath is located in the palmar (plantar) face of the distal limb. It consists of a synovium, divided into intimate and vascularised supportive layers, and ligaments that strengthen the tendon sheath in its palmar (plantar) face. The synovium surrounds the digital flexor tendons during their passage within the sheath. The synovium fluid, produced by the filtering of the blood and by the intima cells, allows lubrification within the sheath. Lameness, originating from digital sheath pathology is not rare, and it is important, for any equine practitioner, to know its normal morphology. The aim of this study is to precise the morphology of the digital sheath, particularly its synovium because the literature is not unanimous. Methods: The digitals tips of 7 "sound" horses were collected. Samples were taken within the 3 annular ligaments (Proximal, Digital Proximal, Digital Distal). The digital flexor tendons were sampled with the visceral sheath of the synovial membrane at the level of the proximal sesamoïd bones and just proximal to the medium scutum. All these samples were embedded in tissue-tek and freezed for cryosectioning. The proximal and distal recessus of the synovial membrane were also sampled, fixed in formalin and embedded in paraffin. Sections were stained with haematoxylin/eosin. One sample of the synovial membrane was taken for electronic microscopy and embedded in? Results: Annular ligaments are composed of dense connective tissue but are transversal strengthening of the fascia rather than true ligaments. The digital flexor tendons showed the typical organisation of the collagen network. Type III fibrocytes were observed within the deep digital flexor tendon. The synovial membrane showed two layers: an intima (with visceral and parietal sheath) with fibroblast-like cells and macrophagic cells, and a sub-intima composed of fibrous tissue that was sometime so thickened that it was difficult to cut! The recessus contained large synovial fringe with adipose tissue. Conclusion: This study permitted to precise the morphology of the digital sheath in horse which may help to better understand the pathological changes

Multilevel use of image repository in the field of veterinary imaging and dissemination of training tools

[Extract] Until now the veterinary teaching environment is limited to static two dimensional materials. In order to improve the teaching experience we decided to adapt our educational PACS to build 2D and 3D viewing veterinary datasets. As entry level of education we setup a knowledge base consisting out of normal anatomy [1, 2]. The second step is the construction of an imaging atlas compared with the normal anatomy of every animal. The third step is the construction of a database containing a wide variety of radiopathology cases. The final level is the integration in an e-learning platform namely WikiVet [3] which is a collaborative initiative involving UK veterinary schools. The project is creating a comprehensive online knowledge base and will provide a reliable reference source to supersede Wikipedia for veterinary students, paramedics and graduates anywhere in the world, improving diagnostic skills using diagnostic imaging

International Veterinary Epilepsy Task Force recommendations for a veterinary epilepsy-specific MRI protocol

Epilepsy is one of the most common chronic neurological diseases in veterinary practice. Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) is regarded as an important diagnostic test to reach the diagnosis of idiopathic epilepsy. However, given that the diagnosis requires the exclusion of other differentials for seizures, the parameters for MRI examination should allow the detection of subtle lesions which may not be obvious with existing techniques. In addition, there are several differentials for idiopathic epilepsy in humans, for example some focal cortical dysplasias, which may only apparent with special sequences, imaging planes and/or particular techniques used in performing the MRI scan. As a result, there is a need to standardize MRI examination in veterinary patients with techniques that reliably diagnose subtle lesions, identify post-seizure changes, and which will allow for future identification of underlying causes of seizures not yet apparent in the veterinary literature. There is a need for a standardized veterinary epilepsy-specific MRI protocol which will facilitate more detailed examination of areas susceptible to generating and perpetuating seizures, is cost efficient, simple to perform and can be adapted for both low and high field scanners. Standardisation of imaging will improve clinical communication and uniformity of case definition between research studies. A 6–7 sequence epilepsy-specific MRI protocol for veterinary patients is proposed and further advanced MR and functional imaging is reviewed

Physiologic response to dobutamine infusion during cardiac stress testing of dogs.

To evaluate response of various cardiovascular variables after administration of incremental doses of dobutamine in healthy conscious dogs, using standardized dobutamine stress echocardiography (DSE).Journal Articleinfo:eu-repo/semantics/publishe

Les particularités anatomiques et les conditions pathologiques spécifiques du pied de l'âne

When the veterinarian is asked for lameness diagnosis of the donkey, he is mostly confronted with hoof problems. The aim of this article is to describe the anatomical particularities of the donkey hoof and summary of the most frequently seen pathological conditions of the donkey foot

Effect of preventive antioxidant supplementation on lung function, airway inflammation and pulmonary 8-epi-PGF2 of calves exposed to ozone

peer reviewe

Evaluation of Web-based tools for building distance education systems

info:eu-repo/semantics/publishe

Effects of dobutamine on isovolumic and ejection phase indices of cardiac contractility in conscious healthy dogs.

The aim of this study was to determine cardiac contractility using indices derived from cardiac catheterisation in conscious healthy dogs during dobutamine infusion. Eight dogs were studied. An ECG was recorded together with left ventricular pressure and volume which were measured using a conductance catheter with an integrated microtip pressure sensor. Eight indices of left ventricular systolic performance were derived from these records. Measurements were realised under basal conditions and during an incremental dobutamine challenge. The maximal rate of rise in ventricular pressure (max dP/dt), max dP/dt divided by the developed pressure and the mean systolic ejection rate were the most sensitive indices to detect dobutamine induced changes in contractility with maximal percentage changes of 122+/-11 per cent, 130+/-7 per cent and 102+/-24 per cent respectively. Ejection fraction increased significantly during dobutamine infusion (maximal percentage change of 43+/-9 per cent) whereas the pre-ejection period (PEP) and the left ventricular ejection time (LVET) decreased significantly (maximal percentage change of -41+/-2 per cent and -28+/-3 per cent respectively). All these six indices were significantly correlated with each other. Conversely, the ratio PEP/LVET and the LVET corrected for heart rate dependency showed a maximal percentage change of only -10+/-1 per cent and -16+/-7 per cent, respectively, during the dobutamine infusion and were not significantly correlated with the other contractility indices. This study demonstrated the feasibility of the conductance method to determine cardiac contractility in conscious healthy dogs submitted to a pharmacological stress testing and provides control values for eight indices of left ventricular contractility during dobutamine infusion at increasing dosages.Journal ArticleResearch Support, Non-U.S. Gov'tinfo:eu-repo/semantics/publishe