Web-Vet Neurology Specialists - Feed Your Brain Podcast Series!

In this lecture, Dr Elizabeth Goudie talks about the challenges we face when anesthetizing a brachycephalic dog, such as a French Bulldog, for advanced imaging. Dr Goudie discusses the underlying pathophysiology of brachycephalic breeds and the common comorbidities encountered in this population. Best practices for anesthetic management to prevent airway crisis, vagal episodes, and regurgitation, as well as manage recovery, are discussed.

Tethered cord syndrome (TCS) is a rare congenital or acquired condition caused by abnormal caudal positioning and/or traction of the spinal cord and meninges, predominantly observed at the level of the conus medullaris. Congenital TCS may result from a tight filum terminale, characterized by reduced elasticity, shortened length, and/or abnormal composition, and may coexist with malformations. In dogs, TCS has been reported in association with spina bifida, myelomeningocele, myeloschysis, and dermoid sinus type VI. However, it may also occur without overt structural deformities. The term occult tethered cord syndrome (OTCS) has been proposed in such cases. In this webinar, Dr. Javier Espinosa reviews his recent study on 30 dogs with confirmed or presumed OTCS, which aimed to characterize the clinical presentation, MRI findings, treatment modalities, and outcomes in these dogs.

Prophylactic fenestration (PF) has been reported to protect against recurrent intervertebral disc extrusion (IVDE), but recurrence is not always confirmed. No published studies address the cost-benefit of PF. Prophylactic fenestration requires additional surgical and anesthetic time, as well as further tissue dissection, all of which contribute to both surgical morbidity and the overall cost of veterinary care. Furthermore, PF is associated with adverse events such as hemorrhage, vertebral instability, further extrusion, iatrogenic discospondylitis, and nerve root trauma, but these are rare when performed by experienced surgeons, with a published complication rate of 0.01%.In this live webinar, Dr. Daniel Low discusses his recently published study on MRI follow-up of chondrodystrophic dogs that underwent prophylactic fenestration.

Dr Cecilia Danciu presents her latest publication on the clinical and imaging characteristics of CSF collection complications in 11 dogs. Complications associated with CSF collection have been reported in dogs and include progressive myelomalacia and hematomyelia. A retrospective study of 30 dogs with intracranial neoplasia documented a complication secondary to CSF collection in 17% of the dogs, with the reported complications including coma, stupor and apnea. Information on the rate of major complications arising as a result of CSF collection in dogs with other neurological disorders, potential risk factors for such complications, including neurological examination findings and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) features are discussed in this webinar summarizing the publication. A link to the publication is provided. https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC12172569/

In this journal club webinar, Dr. Theofanis Liatis discusses his most recent publication on generalised tremors in dogs based on a collection of 198 cases. The objective of the research was to describe the clinical characteristics of the cases, the prevalence of the diseases associated with generalized tremors in dogs, and identify clinical features that could be associated with the underlying disease. A tremor is an involuntary, rhythmic, oscillatory movement of a body part and generalized tremors affect the entire body. However, these tremors may have different features, such as being activated upon gravity (postural) or deteriorating with excitement and movement (action‐related kinetic), being episodic or continuous, or accompanied by intention head tremors. Generalized tremors have been associated with idiopathic generalized tremor syndrome, mycotoxin intoxication as well as other toxic diseases (e.g., metaldehyde, avermectins), metabolic diseases (e.g., hypercalcemia, hypocalcemia, hyperphosphatemia, hyperchloremia, hypokalemia, hyperammonemia, hepatic encephalopathy), orthostatic tremors and hypomyelination or dysmyelination.