Thoracic Radiographs Research Articles

Diagnostic imaging in acute interstitial pneumonia in foals: High variability of interpretation of chest radiographs and good conformity between ultrasonographic and post-mortem findings.

Acute interstitial pneumonia (AIP) in foals is a rare but challenging syndrome. Diagnostic imaging is crucial for its diagnosis. While there are some reports on radiographic findings, ultrasound is sparsely described. Variability in the evaluation of radiographs in AIP has been well described in human literature. Part one of this study is a prospective, observational, observer agreement study investigating inter- and intraobserver agreement in the assessment of thoracic radiographs. Part two is a prospective, controlled, descriptive study on thoracic ultrasonography in foals with AIP. Eighteen foals with AIP were examined daily by thoracic ultrasound. Thoracic radiographs were taken on three successive occasions. Blinded radiographs were assessed by three observers based on two semi-quantitative scores (pattern recognition, subjective evaluation). Foals that died underwent postmortem examination (n=9); postmortem findings were compared to ultrasound findings on the day of death. Ultrasonographic findings were consistent with postmortem findings. Comet tail scores in foals with AIP were significantly higher (p<0.0001) than in control foals. Interrater agreement for the assessment of radiographs was none to moderate (κ=0.07-0.65) for pattern recognition and weak to moderate (κ=0.58-0.62) for subjective scoring. Intrarater agreement varied from minimal to strong (κ=0.30-0.80) for pattern recognition but was strong (κ=0.83) for subjective scoring. In conclusion, the diagnostic value of thoracic ultrasound in foals with AIP is high due to good conformity with postmortem findings. The evaluation of thoracic radiographs showed high variability in inter- and intra-agreement.

Oesophageal dysmotility in a dog following surgical correction of an oesophageal perforation

AbstractA 9‐year‐old, male neutered Jack Russell terrier, weighing 6.7 kg, required general anaesthesia for retrieval of an oesophageal foreign body (OFB) of 7 days' duration. Removal of the osseous foreign body with oesophagoscopy was successful but revealed severe oesophageal necrosis with two full thickness tears of the caudal thoracic oesophagus prompting surgical intervention. Bilateral thoracotomy was performed, and the oesophageal lesions were successfully apposed. A gastrostomy tube was placed to provide nutrition until oral feeding resumed. Fourteen days post‐operatively the dog began to regurgitate with increasing frequency. Oesophagoscopy was repeated and revealed healing of the oesophageal lesions. Thoracic radiography was also normal. A fluoroscopic barium swallow study was performed 24 days post‐operatively which revealed severe oesophageal dysmotility of the caudal thoracic oesophagus. To the authors’ knowledge, this is the first report of severe oesophageal dysmotility as a delayed, post‐operative complication of oesophageal surgery following complete perforation by an osseous OFB.

Persistent hypotension resolved by neostigmine administration in a dog in which atracurium was used

AbstractA dog with a large abdominal mass underwent coeliotomy. Before surgery, the dog was anaemic, hypoalbuminaemic and had a grade III out of VI left sided holosystolic heart murmur; no signs related to heart failure were detected on thoracic radiographs. After intramuscular administration of methadone, anaesthesia was induced intravenously (IV) with fentanyl and propofol and maintained with isoflurane in oxygen. Lungs were mechanically ventilated using a volume‐controlled setting. To manage ventilation asynchrony, atracurium was administered IV. Concurrent hypotension did not respond to lowering the isoflurane concentration, crystalloid and colloid boluses administration, and dobutamine infusion. Surgery lasted 40 minutes, and the mass was easily removed. At end of surgery, neostigmine was administered IV slowly, and a progressive improvement of arterial blood pressure was recorded. The animal was then allowed to breathe spontaneously, and isoflurane was discontinued. Recovery from general anaesthesia was uneventful.

Gastro‐oesophageal resection and anastomosis for an oesophageal leiomyoma in a dog

AbstractAn 11‐year‐old female spayed golden retriever was presented for a second opinion regarding a recently diagnosed distal oesophageal mass. The dog had a history of chronic post‐prandial regurgitation. Physical examination and laboratory work yielded no significant findings. Thoracic radiographs revealed no significant findings other than equivocal cardiomegaly. A fluoroscopic barium swallow study and computed tomography scans of the chest and abdomen were performed, revealing an approximately 2.5 cm mass at the level of the lower oesophageal sphincter. A gastro‐oesophageal resection and anastomosis was performed and histopathology of the mass was consistent with leiomyoma, excised with complete margins. The dog recovered uneventfully and was discharged from the hospital 3 days after surgery. The dog was doing well 5 months after surgery, with an acceptable quality of life and mild, intermittent regurgitation episodes.

Evaluation of bronchial narrowing in coughing dogs with heart murmurs using computed tomography.

BackgroundThe origin of cough in dogs with heart murmurs is controversial, because the cough could be primary cardiac (eg, pulmonary edema, bronchi compression by left‐sided cardiomegaly) or respiratory (eg, bronchomalacia, other bronchial or bronchiolar disease, interstitial lung disease) in origin.Hypothesis/ObjectivesTo study the association between left atrium (LA) dilatation and cardiomegaly and bronchial narrowing in coughing dogs with heart murmurs using computed tomography (CT).AnimalsTwenty‐one client‐owned coughing dogs with heart murmurs and 14 historical control dogs.MethodsDogs with cough and murmur were prospectively recruited over 4 months. Cervical and thoracic radiography, echocardiography, and thoracic CT were performed in enrolled dogs. Control dogs, with no disease on thoracic CT and no records of heart murmur and coughing, were gathered from the institution's computerized database. Degree of bronchial narrowing was assessed using the bronchial‐to‐aorta (Ao) ratio, measured by 3 radiologists blinded to the clinical findings. After identifying bronchi that were significantly narrowed in dogs with murmur compared to controls, the relationship between degree of narrowing and LA/Ao ratio (measured echocardiographically) and vertebral heart scale (VHS) measured radiographically was studied in dogs with murmur using mixed‐effects regression.ResultSignificant narrowing was identified for all left‐sided bronchi and the right principal, middle, and caudal bronchi in the coughing dogs, compared with controls. Increasing LA size and VHS were significantly inversely associated with diameter for all left‐sided and right‐sided bronchi indicated above.Conclusion and Clinical ImportanceResults indicate an association between LA enlargement and cardiomegaly and bronchial narrowing and support heart size‐associated exacerbation of cough in dogs with murmurs.

Diaphragmatic hernia and unilateral renal agenesis in a crab-eating fox (Cerdocyon thous)

An approximately 3-month-old crab-eating fox (Cerdocyon thous) was found by environmental authorities in the State of Paraiba, Northeastern Brazil and referred to a wildlife care center. The fox was presenting respiratory distress and it was referred to the Veterinary Hospital of the Federal University of Paraiba (UFPB) for ancillary testing. Abdominal and thoracic ultrasound and radiographies were performed. These imaging tests indicated the fox had a possible diaphragmatic hernia and ectopic kidney. The imageology results were confirmed on necropsy, which revealed a postero-lateral focal discontinuity of the dorsal aspect of the diaphragmatic muscle with protrusion of the gastrointestinal tract into the thoracic cavity. The stomach and intestinal loops were filled with gas and obliterated the visualization of the heart and lungs. Additionally, only the right kidney was found, and no vestigial left kidney was identified. Congenital diaphragmatic hernias are not commonly observed in wildlife but should be considered as a potential differential diagnosis for acute onset of respiratory distress in young carnivores.

B-cell lymphoma invading and compressing the heart base and pericardium in a cat

A 3-year-old, 3.5-kg, neutered male, domestic shorthair cat presented with progressive lethargy, anorexia, coughing, and acute respiratory distress of two-week duration. Auscultation detected diffuse pulmonary crackles. Lung sounds were absent over the left cranial thorax. Sinus tachycardia was recorded. Thoracic radiographs revealed cardiac silhouette enlargement, dorsal displacement of the carina, and uniform, soft tissue opacity in the left cranial hemithorax. Transthoracic two-dimensional echocardiography revealed a large mass within and external to the pericardial space, effacing the pericardium, and compressing basal cardiac structures. The point-of-care feline immunodeficiency virus and feline leukemia virus test was negative. Euthanasia was elected, and permission for necropsy granted. Gross postmortem evaluation revealed a prominent mediastinal mass that effaced the left cranial lung lobe and invaded the heart base and pericardium. The mass was confirmed as B-cell lymphoma by histopathology and immunohistochemistry.

Topographical distribution and radiographic pattern of lung lesions in canine eosinophilic bronchopneumopathy.

To evaluate the radiographic lung pattern and topographical distribution in canine eosinophilic bronchopneumopathy. Medical records were retrospectively reviewed for dogs diagnosed with eosinophilic bronchopneumopathy. Lateral thoracic radiographs were examined for the presence of increased radiopacity, classification of pattern, topography of lung changes (cranioventral, perihilar, caudodorsal, caudoventral) and severity of pulmonary lesions. Forty-four cases were identified with the Labrador retriever being the most commonly affected breed; there was a mean age of 5 years and an equal gender distribution. Coughing was the most common clinical sign. Circulating eosinophilia was present in 39% of dogs, with a mean peripheral eosinophilia of 5.1×109 cells/L and a mean bronchoalveolar lavage fluid eosinophilia of 40%. Eighty percent of dogs had an abnormal lung pattern in at least one of the four lung fields; the remaining had normal thoracic radiographs. The most common patterns were a bronchial and a bronchointerstitial pattern, with 41 and 89% distribution to the caudodorsal lung field, respectively. A bronchial and bronchointerstitial pattern are the most common radiographic lung patterns seen in canine eosinophilic bronchopneumopathy with these patterns most frequently topographically distributed to at least the caudodorsal lung field. Furthermore, within the caudodorsal lung field, a bronchointerstitial pattern predominates. This radiographic and topographical finding may allow eosinophilic bronchopneumopathy to take precedence on a differential diagnoses list before confirmatory bronchoalveolar lavage fluid sampling.

Classification and Predictions of Lung Diseases from Chest X-rays Using MobileNet V2

Featured Application: The method presented in this paper can be applied in medical computer systems for supporting medical diagnosis.Abstract: Thoracic radiography (chest X-ray) is an inexpensive but effective and widely used medical imaging procedure. However, a lack of qualified radiologists severely limits the applicability of the technique. Even current Deep Learning-based approaches often require strong supervision, e.g., annotated bounding boxes, to train such systems, which is impossible to harvest on a large scale. In this work, we proposed the classification and prediction of lung pathologies of frontal thoracic X-rays using a modified model MobileNet V2. We considered using transfer learning with metadata leverage. We used the NIH Chest-Xray-14 database, and we did a comparison of performance of our approach to other state-of-the-art methods for pathology classification. The main comparison was by Area under the Receiver Operating Characteristic Curve (AUC) statistics and analyzed the differences between classifiers. Overall, we notice a considerable spread in the achieved result with an average AUC of 0.811 and an accuracy above 90%. We conclude that resampling the dataset gives a huge improvement to the model performance. In this work, we intended to create a model that is capable of being trained, and modified devices with low computing power because they can be implemented into smaller IoT devices.

Lessons from the COVID-19 Pandemic on the Use of Artificial Intelligence in Digital Radiology: The Submission of a Survey to Investigate the Opinion of Insiders.

The development of artificial intelligence (AI) during the COVID-19 pandemic is there for all to see, and has undoubtedly mainly concerned the activities of digital radiology. Nevertheless, the strong perception in the research and clinical application environment is that AI in radiology is like a hammer in search of a nail. Notable developments and opportunities do not seem to be combined, now, in the time of the COVID-19 pandemic, with a stable, effective, and concrete use in clinical routine; the use of AI often seems limited to use in research applications. This study considers the future perceived integration of AI with digital radiology after the COVID-19 pandemic and proposes a methodology that, by means of a wide interaction of the involved actors, allows a positioning exercise for acceptance evaluation using a general purpose electronic survey. The methodology was tested on a first category of professionals, the medical radiology technicians (MRT), and allowed to (i) collect their impressions on the issue in a structured way, and (ii) collect their suggestions and their comments in order to create a specific tool for this professional figure to be used in scientific societies. This study is useful for the stakeholders in the field, and yielded several noteworthy observations, among them (iii) the perception of great development in thoracic radiography and CT, but a loss of opportunity in integration with non-radiological technologies; (iv) the belief that it is appropriate to invest in training and infrastructure dedicated to AI; and (v) the widespread idea that AI can become a strong complementary tool to human activity. From a general point of view, the study is a clear invitation to face the last yard of AI in digital radiology, a last yard that depends a lot on the opinion and the ability to accept these technologies by the operators of digital radiology.

Comparison of C-reactive protein concentrations in dogs with Bordetella bronchiseptica infection and aspiration bronchopneumonia.

BackgroundC‐reactive protein (CRP) is a well‐known acute‐phase protein in dogs that may discriminate bacterial bronchopneumonia from other pulmonary conditions. Bronchopneumonia caused by Bordetella bronchiseptica (Bb) is common but the associated increase in CRP concentration in naturally infected dogs has not been fully explored.ObjectiveTo compare CRP concentrations of dogs with Bb infection, with or without radiographic pulmonary lesions, to dogs with aspiration bronchopneumonia (ABP).AnimalsSixteen dogs with Bb infection and 36 dogs with ABP.MethodsRetrospective study. C‐reactive protein concentrations and thoracic radiographs were available for each dog.ResultsEleven dogs with Bb infection had alveolar lesions. In all dogs, CRP concentration was mildly increased (14‐38 mg/L). In the 5 dogs without alveolar lesions, CRP concentration was within the reference range in all but 1 dog, in which it was slightly increased. Median CRP concentration was significantly higher in dogs with alveolar lesions (20 mg/L) compared with dogs without alveolar lesions (5 mg/L; p < .002). In dogs with Bb infection, median duration of clinical signs was not different between dogs with normal CRP concentration and dogs with increased concentration. In dogs with Bb infection either with or without alveolar lessions, median CRP concentration was significantly lower (20 mg/L) than in dogs with ABP (118 mg/L; p < .001).Conclusions and Clinical ImportanceIn contrast to dogs with APB, CRP was not a good marker for the diagnosis of dogs suspected to have bordetellosis. Confirmation of Bb infection still requires lower airway sampling.

Radiographic quantification of left atrial size in dogs with myxomatous mitral valve disease.

BackgroundIn the absence of echocardiography, identification of cardiomegaly via thoracic radiography is a necessary criterion for classification of disease severity in dogs with myxomatous mitral valve disease (MMVD).ObjectiveModified‐vertebral left atrial size (M‐VLAS) facilitates objective radiographic assessment of the left atrium (LA) in 2 dimensions and identifies LA enlargement more accurately than existing methods.AnimalsSixty‐four dogs with various stages of MMVD and 6 control healthy dogs.MethodsRetrospective case–control study. Medical records were searched for dogs with varying severity of MMVD. Modified‐vertebral left atrial size, vertebral left atrial size (VLAS), vertebral heart size (VHS), and radiographic left atrial dimension (RLAD) were measured from thoracic radiographs and compared with echocardiographically derived measurements.ResultsPositive correlation to LA/Ao was identified for M‐VLAS (r = 0.77, P < .001), VLAS (r = 0.76, P < .001), RLAD (r = 0.75, P < .001), and VHS (r = 0.67, P < .001). Receiver operating characteristic analyzes provided an area under the curve of 0.97 (95% CI, 0.94‐1.00) for M‐VLAS, which was superior to VHS (0.90, 95% CI, 0.94‐1.00, P = .03) in identifying dogs with LA/Ao ≥1.6. A cut‐off value of ≥3.4 vertebrae using M‐VLAS provided 92.7% sensitivity and 93.1% specificity in predicting LA enlargement.Conclusions and clinical importanceM‐VLAS, which is superior to VHS, offers an accurate and repeatable way to radiographically identify LA enlargement in dogs with MMVD.

Automatic classification of canine thoracic radiographs using deep learning

The interpretation of thoracic radiographs is a challenging and error-prone task for veterinarians. Despite recent advancements in machine learning and computer vision, the development of computer-aided diagnostic systems for radiographs remains a challenging and unsolved problem, particularly in the context of veterinary medicine. In this study, a novel method, based on multi-label deep convolutional neural network (CNN), for the classification of thoracic radiographs in dogs was developed. All the thoracic radiographs of dogs performed between 2010 and 2020 in the institution were retrospectively collected. Radiographs were taken with two different radiograph acquisition systems and were divided into two data sets accordingly. One data set (Data Set 1) was used for training and testing and another data set (Data Set 2) was used to test the generalization ability of the CNNs. Radiographic findings used as non mutually exclusive labels to train the CNNs were: unremarkable, cardiomegaly, alveolar pattern, bronchial pattern, interstitial pattern, mass, pleural effusion, pneumothorax, and megaesophagus. Two different CNNs, based on ResNet-50 and DenseNet-121 architectures respectively, were developed and tested. The CNN based on ResNet-50 had an Area Under the Receive-Operator Curve (AUC) above 0.8 for all the included radiographic findings except for bronchial and interstitial patterns both on Data Set 1 and Data Set 2. The CNN based on DenseNet-121 had a lower overall performance. Statistically significant differences in the generalization ability between the two CNNs were evident, with the CNN based on ResNet-50 showing better performance for alveolar pattern, interstitial pattern, megaesophagus, and pneumothorax.

Active TB screening among homeless people attending soup kitchens in Verona (Italy).

The hard-to-reach populations, including the homeless, are particularly vulnerable to the development of active tuberculosis. According to the World Health Organization, tuberculosis rates among the homeless in industrialized Countries are up to 20 times higher if compared with the general popula-tion, representing a relevant public health problem. The aim of our study was to describe the results of an active tuberculosis screening applied in order to find out suspected active TB cases among the homeless in Verona. As part of a partnership between the non-profit association Medici per la Pace and one of the Local Health Units of Veneto Region (ULSS 9 Scaligera) in 2018, a tuberculosis screening, based on thoracic radiographs, was offered to the homeless guests of two Verona's soup kitchens. The studied population included 139 people, and three cases of suspected active tuberculosis, all in males, were observed. Among these, two received a diagnostic confirmation of active tuberculosis (a prevalence of 1.44% - CI: 0,17 - 5,1). Moreover, radiographic patterns of tuberculosis aftermaths were found in six additional subjects. Interventions specifically dedicated to hard-to-reach populations, can be useful in identifying tuberculosis active cases and controlling the disease in low tuberculosis burden countries. In particular, the active research of subjects, the screening carried out with mobile X-ray, and also the constant caring of the patients with active disease, could be the right method to keep under control this relevant public health problem.

Chest computed tomographic findings of patients with COVID-19-related pneumonia.

BackgroundIn December 2019, pneumonia cases of unknown cause were announced in Wuhan, China. The causative agent of pneumonia was identified as coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), and the disease was named coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19).PurposeTo evaluate the usefulness of computed thoracic tomography (CT) and postero anterior (PA) thoracic radiography in patients with COVID-19.Material and MethodsBetween March and June 2020, the patients who arrived at our hospital with suspicion of COVID-19 were retrospectively analyzed. Thorax CT findings of the 281 patients (142 females and 139 males; age range 3–91 years) with positive PCR tests were evaluated. Lesions in the lung parenchyma were examined according to their number, localization, and distribution. PA chest radiograms were classified into two groups, positive and negative for the lung parenchymal lesions.ResultsOf the total 281 patients with PCR-positive COVID-19, CT examinations were normal in 107 (38.1%), and positive CT findings for pneumonia were found in 174 patients (61.9%). Bilateral involvement was observed in 100 (57.5%) of the 174 patients with positive CT findings, and unilateral involvement was observed in 74 (42.5%) of them. According to the localization of the lesions, peripheral subpleural distribution occurred in 160 of the 174 patients (91.9). The most common lesion was the ground glass opacities (GGO). In 77 of 281 PCR-positive patients (27.4), pulmonary lesions were found on PA chest radiograms.ConclusionThe presence of bilateral posterior subpleural GGO, nodule, and consolidation in thoracic CT are significant in terms of COVID-19 pneumonia.

Osteosarcoma of the hard palate in a dog ˗ case report

ABSTRACT The osteosarcoma (OSA) is the most diagnosed primary bone cancer in canine patients. This work reports a case of a canine, six years old, mongrel, female, intact, with an OSA in the hard palate. Physical examination detected a firm mass in the palate. Thoracic radiographs, hematological and biochemical exams, histopathological exams and computed tomography were requested. A chondroblastic OSA was diagnosed and the tumor was characterized by immunohistochemistry. There was never evidence of metastasis in this case. The treatment consisted of the combination of conventional chemotherapy, metronomic chemotherapy, and palliative care, aiming at greater survival and well-being of the patient since surgical excision was not possible due to the location and extension of the tumor. Osteogenic sarcomas of the hard palate are rarely seen and described in the literature. In this article we present a characterization of the osteosarcoma with uncommon localization in the hard palate.

Multi-factorial considerations for intra-thoracic lymph node evaluations of healthy cats on computed tomographic images

BackgroundIt is difficult to examine mild to moderate feline intra-thoracic lymphadenopathy via and thoracic radiography. Despite previous information from computed tomographic (CT) images of intra-thoracic lymph nodes, some factors from animals and CT setting were less elucidated. Therefore, this study aimed to investigate the effect of internal factors from animals and external factors from the CT procedure on the feasibility to detect the intra-thoracic lymph nodes. Twenty-four, client-owned, clinically healthy cats were categorized into three groups according to age. They underwent pre- and post-contrast enhanced CT for whole thorax followed by inter-group evaluation and comparison of sternal, cranial mediastinal, and tracheobronchial lymph nodes.ResultsPost contrast-enhanced CT appearances revealed that intra-thoracic lymph nodes of kittens were invisible, whereas the sternal, cranial mediastinal, and tracheobronchial nodes of cats aged over 7 months old were detected (6/24, 9/24 and 7/24, respectively). Maximum width of these lymph nodes were 3.93 ± 0.74 mm, 4.02 ± 0.65 mm, and 3.51 ± 0.62 mm, respectively. By age, lymph node sizes of these cats were not significantly different. Transverse lymph node width of males was larger than that of females (P = 0.0425). Besides, the detection score of lymph nodes was affected by slice thickness (P < 0.01) and lymph node width (P = 0.0049). Furthermore, an irregular, soft tissue structure, possibly the thymus, was detected in all juvenile cats and three mature cats.ConclusionsDespite additional information on intra-thoracic lymph nodes in CT images, which can be used to investigate lymphatic-related abnormalities, age, sex, and slice thickness of CT images must be also considered.

A case of a complete atrioventricular canal defect in a ferret

BackgroundAtrioventricular canal defect is a rare congenital disorder of the heart and describes the presence of an atrial septal defect, a variable presentation of ventricular septal alterations including ventricular septal defect malformations in the mitral and tricuspid valves. The defect has been described in human beings, dogs, cats, pigs, and horses.Case presentationThis paper describes the case of a complete atrioventricular canal defect in a four-year-old intact male pet ferret (Mustela putorius furo), which was presented due to posterior weakness, ataxia, and decreased appetite. A loud systolic murmur, dyspnea, and hind limb paraparesis were detected during the clinical examination. Thoracic radiographs showed generalized cardiomegaly and lung edema. ECG showed sinus rhythm with prolonged P waves and QRS complexes. Echocardiography showed a large atrial septal defect, atrioventricular dysplasia, and a ventricular septal defect. Palliative treatment with oxygen, furosemide, spironolactone, enalapril, diltiazem, and supportive care was chosen as the therapy of choice. The ferret recovered gradually during hospitalization. A follow-up examination at three and six months showed stabilization of cardiac function.ConclusionsTo the authors knowledge, this is the first time an atrioventricular canal defect has been described in a pet ferret.

Evaluation of radiographic predictors of left heart enlargement in dogs with known or suspected cardiovascular disease

Radiographic assessment of heart size is important for clinical management of dogs with cardiovascular disease (CVDz). We sought to compare the ability of vertebral heart size (VHS), vertebral left atrial size (VLAS), and radiologists' assessment of left atrial size (RadLAE) to predict echocardiographic left atrial size (EchoLAE), an important marker of left heart disease severity. We also compared the ability of VHS and VLAS to predict echocardiographic criteria for ACVIM stage B2 (EchoB2) in dogs with myxomatous mitral valve disease (MMVD). This prospective observational study enrolled 183 dogs with known or suspected CVDz that had an echocardiographic examination and thoracic radiographs obtained within 24 h. Compared to increased VHS, VLAS>2.3 was a more accurate predictor of EchoLAE (P=.002). VLAS>2.3 and RadLAE (both P<.0001) were independently associated with EchoLAE but VHS was not (P=.45). Optimal cutoffs for VLAS and VHS to predict EchoLAE were>2.3 vertebrae (sensitivity [Sn]=90.3%, specificity [Sp]=73.6%) and>11.1 vertebrae (Sn=75.8%, Sp=76.0%), respectively. Diagnostic accuracy of VLAS (AUC 0.84, 95% CI 0.73-0.92) and VHS (AUC 0.78, 95% CI 0.66-0.88) to predict EchoB2 in dogs with subclinical MMVD (n=64) were not significantly different (P=.17). Results demonstrate that VLAS and RadLAE were superior indicators of EchoLAE compared to VHS in dogs with known or suspected CVDz. Both VLAS and VHS are useful predictors of EchoB2 in dogs with subclinical MMVD. When echocardiography is unavailable, VLAS represents a useful radiographic measurement to aid clinical management of dogs with known or suspected CVDz.

Development and evaluation of methods for vertebral heart score determination in guinea pig (Cavia porcellus).

Cardiac problems are highly fetal diseases among exotic animals, not only in the rabbit which is prone to such diseases but also in the guinea pig (Cavia porcellus). In rodents, imaging studies such as thoracic radiography are more practical and easier to perform than echocardiography. Cardiac size is primarily evaluated using vertebral heart size (VHS) as reported in ferrets and rabbits. We therefore attempted to determine standard cardiac dimensions in the guinea pig by thoracic radiography using VHS. The purpose of this research was getting an indicator of the normal range of male and female, mature and apparently healthy guinea pigs heart. Standard radiographs of the thorax in lateral and ventro-dorsal (VD) views were taken and interpreted. In our study to determine VHS in VD view conventional method was used. In addition to conventional VHS method, two other measurement methods were performed in lateral view. Statistical analyses were performed with a SPSS Software and Mann-Whitney U test to compare results. Mean and standard deviation were also calculated. According to the results, the total average of VHS in lateral view by the first method was 7.80 ± 0.12, by the second method was 7.80 ± 0.16, by the third method was 7.60 ± 0.15 and the total of average of VHS in VD view was 9.20 ± 0.23. According to present research findings, gender had no meaningful effect on the measuring of the heart size. More researches on the same age and the same species guinea pigs are needed for more accurate evaluation.