Abstract
The objective of this study was to provide a morphometric description of the caudal cervical intervertebral disc (IVD) spaces of small-breed dogs and cats. Specimens consisting of C4 through C7 from five small-breed dogs and six cats were positioned in neutral, flexion, extension, and lateral bending positions; and CT images were acquired. Height and width of the cranial and caudal vertebral endplates (VEPs), angle between the VEPs (IVD wedge angle), and craniocaudal distance (IVD width) between VEPs for the four loading positions were measured and compared for three segments (C4–C5, C5–C6, and C6–C7). VEP size normalized to body weight from medium-sized dogs was retrieved from a previous study and compared with data from small dogs and cats. A linear mixed model was used to compare outcome measures. Significance was set to p < 0.05. VEP size normalized to body weight was the largest in small dogs compared with cats (p = 0.0422) and medium-sized dogs (p = 0.0064). Cats and medium-sized dogs were similar (p = 0.2763) in this regard. Flexion and extension induced a reduction of IVD width in the ventral portion of the IVD and the area of the nucleus. The dorsal part of the IVD remained unchanged throughout loading conditions. Unique morphometric characteristics of the caudal cervical IVD space of small dogs and cats were detected that are different from those described in sizes of dogs (medium-sized) typically affected by caudal cervical spondylomyelopathy (CSM). These findings may help to understand the different pathomechanisms in cervical spinal disease between small- and medium-sized dogs, including caudal CSM.
Highlights
Caudal cervical spondylomyelopathy (CSM) is a common disease in middle- to large-breed dogs involving neurological signs resulting from compression of the spinal cord and the nerve roots in the caudal cervical spine (C5–C6 and C6–C7) [1, 2]
An increased mobility transmitted by the articular facets and a relatively narrow spinal canal combined with a degenerated protruding intervertebral disc (IVD) have been identified as key factors for the development of CSM [1, 3]
The current investigation showed that the vertebral endplates (VEPs) and IVD spaces of the caudal cervical spine of small dogs and cats are largely similar with respect to morphometry
Summary
Caudal cervical spondylomyelopathy (CSM) is a common disease in middle- to large-breed dogs involving neurological signs resulting from compression of the spinal cord and the nerve roots in the caudal cervical spine (C5–C6 and C6–C7) [1, 2]. Specific morphometric parameters (e.g., IVD height, vertebral canal size, and foraminal size) of the cervical spine of the Doberman Pinscher have been investigated to obtain further insight into the pathogenesis of CSM [4, 7, 10, 11]. Some of these morphometric characteristics have been compared between disease-free and CSM-affected Doberman Pinschers [5, 9, 12,13,14,15,16,17]. These inconclusive findings triggered a renovated research enthusiasm on investigating which morphometric parameter may contribute to CMS etiology
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