Introduction

Intervertebral disc disease (IVDD) is the most common cause of myelopathy in dogs. Treatment protocols vary widely from the use of acupuncture, corticosteroids, decompressive surgical techniques, cage rest, or a combination of the aforementioned.

Objectives

Aims of present study were to analyze the clinical characteristics of canine IVDD cases.

Methods

Total 141 dogs suspected IVDD were referred to Animal Medical Center, Chonbuk National University from 2012 to 2014. Of the 141 cases, 63 patients were diagnosed IVDD by magnetic resonance imaging (MRI).

Results

Within 63 IVDD diagnosed cases, 38 cases were performed treatment. Mean age and body weight were 7.9 ± 3.4 year-old and 5.81 ± 2.93 kg. Predominant breeds were small breeds (86.8%) such as Maltese and Pekinese. Male patients (71%) were higher incidence rate than female (29%). Twenty-five patients (65.8%) had multiple site of IVDD while 13 cases (34.2%) were single site. Occurrence of Hansen type I and II were similar and 10 cases (26.3%) were shown both types. Sixteen cases (42.1%) were performed decompressive surgery whereas 22 cases were received conservative treatments such as corticosteroid (47.4%) and acupuncture (10.5%). Within 38 cases, 35 cases had successful outcomes while 3 cases were euthanatized due to multiple neurological signs.

Conclusions

Present study were described the clinical characteristics of canine IVDD. Small breeds, male patients, and multiple site of IVDD were relatively common aspects of canine IVDD.

Acknowledgements

This research was supported by Basic Science Research Program through the National Research Foundation of Korea (NRF) funded by the Ministry of Education (NRF-2014R1A2A2A01007969).