Abstract
BackgroundAlthough thoracic vertebral malformations with kyphosis and scoliosis are often considered incidental findings on diagnostic imaging studies of screw-tailed brachycephalic breeds, they have been suggested to interfere with spinal biomechanics and intervertebral disc degeneration. It is however unknown if an abnormal spinal curvature also predisposes dogs to develop clinically relevant intervertebral disc herniations. The aim of this study was to evaluate if the occurrence of thoracic vertebral malformations, kyphosis or scoliosis would be associated with a higher prevalence of cervical or thoracolumbar intervertebral disc extrusion in French bulldogs.ResultsFrench bulldogs that underwent computed tomography for reasons unrelated to spinal disease (n = 101), and French bulldogs with thoracolumbar (n = 47) or cervical intervertebral disc extrusion (n = 30) that underwent magnetic resonance imaging were included. There was a significant association between the presence of kyphosis and the occurrence of intervertebral disc extrusion, particularly in the thoracolumbar region. Dogs with kyphosis were at nearly a two times increased odds of being affected by intervertebral disc extrusion than those without kyphosis [(OR = 1.98 (95% CI: 1.04–3.78)]. There was also an association between the presence of scoliosis and the anatomical distribution of intervertebral disc extrusions, with dogs with scoliosis more likely to have more caudal lumbar intervertebral disc extrusions. Presence of scoliosis was not associated with an increased odds of being affected by intervertebral disc extrusion.ConclusionsAlthough thoracic vertebral malformations with kyphosis only rarely cause spinal cord dysfunction in itself, French bulldogs with kyphosis appear to be at higher risk to develop thoracolumbar intervertebral disc extrusion.
Highlights
Thoracic vertebral malformations with kyphosis and scoliosis are often considered incidental findings on diagnostic imaging studies of screw-tailed brachycephalic breeds, they have been suggested to interfere with spinal biomechanics and intervertebral disc degeneration
This study included a group of 178 French bulldog (FB)’s, which consisted of 47 dogs with thoracolumbar Intervertebral disc extrusion (IVDE), 30 with cervical IVDE and 101 FB’s underwent computed tomography (CT) imaging for reasons unrelated to spinal disease (Table 1 and Additional file 1)
Forty-four dogs (93.6%) in this group had one (n = 10 dogs) or more (n = 34 dogs) thoracic vertebral body malformations with 27 dogs (57.4%) demonstrating spinal kyphosis and 13 (27.7%) demonstrating spinal scoliosis
Summary
Thoracic vertebral malformations with kyphosis and scoliosis are often considered incidental findings on diagnostic imaging studies of screw-tailed brachycephalic breeds, they have been suggested to interfere with spinal biomechanics and intervertebral disc degeneration It is unknown if an abnormal spinal curvature predisposes dogs to develop clinically relevant intervertebral disc herniations. Inglez de Souza et al BMC Veterinary Research (2018) 14:5 subsequent early degeneration of adjacent intervertebral discs and altered distribution of intervertebral disc extrusions (IVDEs), along the vertebral column in FB [5] It is currently unclear if the presence of congenital thoracic vertebral body malformations with kyphosis or scoliosis increases the actual risk of suffering from cervical or thoracolumbar IVDE. It was hypothesized that FBs with kyphosis or scoliosis would have an increased risk to develop IVDE, would have a different anatomical distribution of IVDE along the vertebral column and would develop IVDE at a younger age when compared with those without spinal curvature abnormalities
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