Spinal Trauma

The diagnosis and treatment of spinal injury is a very controversial topic in veterinary medicine. Direct comparisons of study results for diagnostic and treatment modalities are difficult because of the variability of neurologic dysfunction, duration of clinical signs and lack of long-term follow studies. The outcome for an individual patient can be dependent on a multitude of different factors, not all of which we can control for, and hence the prognostication for an individual can be difficult. An owner’s decision to pursue therapy may be solely based upon such prognostic advice and so we desperately need continued investigation into this area and more in the way of long- term studies. Supportive care for the recumbent patient is as important as the initial emergency decision making. The larger the patient the more likely that a period of protracted recumbency will be associated with secondary complications; these include skin, bladder and respiratory diseases. Here we will review the assessment and current treatment recommendations for dogs with acute spinal injury as well as the management of a recumbent dog with spinal disease. […]