Possible cervical IVDD in a Dogue de Bordeaux

[Guest guest]

A 4yr old Dogue de Bordeaux, an A+ client, came in today with sudden acute

ataxia and trouble walking. Seemed fine this am. Has slowed down in hind end for

a few days so she put the dog on Deramax. At presentation, he can not walk

without assistance, knuckling on both front limbs, decreased proprioception on

front and decrease reflex on front, hind legs crosses when tries to walk, hyper

reflexia, and delayed proprioception, but does right them after 3-4 sec. No neck

pain. Referral is not an option, so I am going to have to treat him myself with

medical and rehab.

I need help. I am halfway through my training and know the basics. I am

scheduled for neuro course in 1 month.

I did not yank on the neck today, but on cervical palpation - no pain. I did not

flex or rotate until I could get to my notes. Also wanted to decrease swelling

some.

I have an E stim unit and my hands. I did some gentle cervical traction today,

and he let me hold it for about 1 minute.

If you do not know what dog de bordeaux is - think big mastiff. >130 pounds,

head bigger than ours.

So palpation of cervical area is fun.

Tomorrow the deramax should be worn off, and I would expect cervical pain. Will

it localize to one side?

I read my notes and said to open the side of the pain, but am I safe to side

bend the neck gently to find the pain and the area in question?

Or should I stick with traction and e stim?

There is no rehab in my area, and surgery will not be an option due to dog's

size and owner's health.

Thanks for any help you can provide.

Eva

[Guest guest]

Are you able to take some sedated cervical radiographs? This would give a bit of

an idea if there is a narrowed space. Surveys are better than nothing if you

don't have any further imaging such as myelogram, CT or MRI.

Do you have laser? That would help with pain and inflammation by putting 8-10 J

in the cervical region.

I've found that upward pressure on the cervical vertebrae from ventrally will

help to localize pain. The ventral processes of C6 are very easy to feel to help

you with landmarks and positioning. Also pressing caudally on rib#1 can help you

determine if there is neck pain. Try these on another dog to get a feel for it

and the amount of pressure a normal dog will allow for comparison to your

patient.

Christie Carlo, DVM, CCRT

>

> A 4yr old Dogue de Bordeaux, an A+ client, came in today with sudden acute

ataxia and trouble walking. Seemed fine this am. Has slowed down in hind end for

a few days so she put the dog on Deramax. At presentation, he can not walk

without assistance, knuckling on both front limbs, decreased proprioception on

front and decrease reflex on front, hind legs crosses when tries to walk, hyper

reflexia, and delayed proprioception, but does right them after 3-4 sec. No neck

pain. Referral is not an option, so I am going to have to treat him myself with

medical and rehab.

> I need help. I am halfway through my training and know the basics. I am

scheduled for neuro course in 1 month.

> I did not yank on the neck today, but on cervical palpation - no pain. I did

not flex or rotate until I could get to my notes. Also wanted to decrease

swelling some.

> I have an E stim unit and my hands. I did some gentle cervical traction today,

and he let me hold it for about 1 minute.

> If you do not know what dog de bordeaux is - think big mastiff. >130 pounds,

head bigger than ours.

> So palpation of cervical area is fun.

> Tomorrow the deramax should be worn off, and I would expect cervical pain.

Will it localize to one side?

> I read my notes and said to open the side of the pain, but am I safe to side

bend the neck gently to find the pain and the area in question?

> Or should I stick with traction and e stim?

> There is no rehab in my area, and surgery will not be an option due to dog's

size and owner's health.

> Thanks for any help you can provide.

> Eva

>