🔍 Key Findings

• Fasting ammonia (FA) was the most specific test (100%) for confirming EHPSS closure postoperatively.
• Serum hyaluronic acid (SHA) and MEGX at 15 minutes post-lidocaine were the most sensitive tests (96.9% and 96.2%, respectively).
• SHA combined with MEGX T15, or with FA or postprandial serum bile acids (SBA), provided 100% sensitivity with good specificity (72.4–82.8%).
• SHA levels remained elevated in all dogs with persistent shunting, even when other tests were normal.
• Paired SBA had moderate sensitivity (90%) and variable specificity (89%).
• The L/MEGX test at 30 min was less useful than at 15 min for assessing closure.
• Traditional SBA testing showed reduced utility postoperatively; normal values did not rule out persistent shunting.
• Blood tests improved when combined, but imaging remains essential to definitively confirm EHPSS closure.

🔍 Key Findings

• Liver masses were most common in the left division (58%), followed by central (27%) and right (15%).
• Right divisional masses were significantly associated with intraoperative complications (33% vs 5.6% left, p = .0037), particularly hemorrhage and injury to major vessels.
• Mortality rate was 6.5% overall, with no significant association with liver lobe location.
• Postoperative complications occurred in 28.7% of cases, but were not significantly associated with mass location.
• Thoracic incision extension (sternotomy or diaphragmotomy) increased odds of postoperative complications by 9.1x (p < .001).
• Use of TA stapler significantly reduced both intraoperative (OR 19x lower) and postoperative complications (OR 4.4x lower) vs other methods.
• Specialist surgeons and heavier dogs had significantly fewer postoperative complications.
• Right lobectomies often required thoracic extension, indirectly linking them to increased postoperative morbidity.

🔍 Key Findings

• Ala vestibuloplasty significantly reduced normalized pulmonary transit time (nPTT) (mean 5.43 → 3.89 sec; p <.001), suggesting improved cardiopulmonary function.
• Clinical respiratory signs improved, including reduced snoring, sneezing, nasal discharge, and open-mouth breathing (all p <.01).
• Activity tolerance increased, with less dyspnea during activity and longer time to onset of dyspnea (p <.005).
• Paradoxical sternal motion resolved in all affected cats after surgery.
• Hiatal hernias resolved in 75% of affected cats on follow-up CT.
• No serious complications occurred, with only mild, self-limiting epistaxis and hypersalivation in a few cases.
• Aberrant turbinates were detected on CT in all cats, though only 1 showed obstructive CATs endoscopically.
• Total clinical severity scores improved significantly postoperatively (median reduction of 30 points; p <.001).

🔍 Key Findings

Increased risk with gonadectomy:

• Pooled OR for CrCLD:
  • Females: 2.29 (95% CI: 1.77–2.95)
  • Males: 2.12 (95% CI: 1.67–2.69)

Early gonadectomy (≤1 year) further increased risk:

• OR vs >1 year:
  • Females: 3.39
  • Males: 3.13

Late gonadectomy (>1 year) had no significant difference vs intact dogs.

Breed-specific findings:

• Female Labradors: No increased CrCLD risk from gonadectomy (OR = 1.19; 95% CI: 0.54–2.64)
• Male Labradors: Increased risk persisted (OR = 2.13; 95% CI: 1.53–2.98)

Study type: Systematic review + meta-analysis of 24 observational studies (n = 1.85 million dogs)

🔍 Key Findings

• Study Design: Canine cadaveric study comparing intercostal thoracotomy (ICT), median sternotomy (MS), and transdiaphragmatic with caudal median sternotomy (TDCM) for accessory lung lobectomy (ALL).
• Main Outcomes:
  • Exposure Area: TDCM (193.5 cm²) > MS (106.5 cm²) > ICT (73.5 cm²) (p = .01).
  • TDCM provided significantly greater exposure than MS (p = .02) and ICT (p = .02); MS > ICT (p = .04).
  • Surgical Time: No significant difference (p = .06).
  • Lobe Excision (% by weight/surface area): No significant difference between groups (p = .4).
  • Staple Line Leak: Leak at ≤40 cmH₂O in 2/4 ICT, 0/4 MS, 0/4 TDCM (p = .09).
• Complications:
  • 1/4 MS cases had iatrogenic damage to an adjacent lobe.
• Technical Insights:
  • TDCM approach allowed immediate visualization of all three parts of the right pulmonary ligament.
  • The TDCM approach offers improved access without requiring en bloc removal with the right caudal lobe.
• Conclusion: The TDCM approach provides improved exposure for ALL lobectomy with no increase in surgical time or complications relative to other approaches.

🔍 Key Findings

• Ectopic ureters in cats are rare, but most are extramural and bilateral.
• Surgical techniques used included ureteroneocystostomy (UNC), neoureterostomy (NU), nephroureterectomy, and cystoscopic laser ablation (CLA).
• All cats showed improvement in urinary continence postoperatively, with 11/12 achieving complete resolution.
• Major complications were rare; one cat developed uroabdomen requiring revision surgery.
• Diagnostic imaging was effective, with abdominal ultrasound diagnosing 8/10 and CT 3/3 cases.
• Short- and long-term complications included urethral spasms, UTIs, stranguria, and rectal prolapse; all were manageable.
• CLA was successful in 2 cats and is noted as a first-time described technique in feline ectopic ureter cases.
• Median postoperative follow-up was 340 days, supporting good long-term outcomes.

🔍 Key Findings Summary

• Ex vivo cadaver study using 5 paired canine thoracic limbs
• Compared medial opening wedge osteotomy (MOWO) and external rotational osteotomy (ERO) of the humerus
• Measured pressure changes in the medial compartment using thin-film sensors
• ERO significantly reduced peak pressure and pressure distribution in the medial elbow compartment (p < 0.05)
• MOWO showed no significant pressure reduction relative to native state
• Combined MOWO + ERO did not significantly improve over ERO alone
• Findings support the biomechanical rationale for ERO as a surgical strategy to offload the medial compartment in cases like medial compartment disease (MCD)

🔍 Key Findings

• Case: 9-year-old Labrador with a right caudal pulmonary adenocarcinoma.
• Technique: Peritumoral injection of indocyanine green (ICG) under VATS guidance, followed by near-infrared (NIR) imaging.
• SLN identified: Right tracheobronchial lymph node fluoresced and was safely extirpated.
• Histology: Grade 1 adenocarcinoma, pneumonia, reactive node.
• Outcome: Patient deteriorated and died on postoperative day 3 due to systemic complications (not linked to surgical technique).
• Clinical relevance: First clinical application of SLN mapping for canine pulmonary neoplasia; method feasible with open or minimally invasive approaches.

🔍 Key Findings

• Long-term respiratory outcomes after BOAS surgery remained improved vs. preoperative values, with no significant decline over time.
• Short-term and long-term Respiratory Functional Grades (RFGs) improved in 81% of dogs, with 34% improving by two grades.
• BOAS indices improved significantly in both short- and long-term follow-ups (mean decrease ~23–25%), supporting sustained benefit.
• No significant difference between short- and long-term BOAS indices (p = .623), indicating durability of surgical effects.
• Obesity impacted outcomes — dogs with increased RFG at long-term follow-up were more likely to have gained weight.
• Owner-reported outcomes poorly correlated with objective measures — some dogs classified as BOAS-affected were perceived by owners as “normal.”
• Multilevel surgery was common, with palatoplasty, tonsillectomy, sacculectomy, and ala-vestibuloplasty most frequently performed.
• Dogs undergoing revision airway surgery were excluded, possibly biasing long-term outcomes toward favorable results.

🔍 Key Findings

• 78% of cats that developed postattenuation neurologic signs (PANS) after congenital portosystemic shunt (cPSS) surgery survived to 30 days.
• Postattenuation seizures (PAS) were associated with significantly decreased 30-day survival (50% vs. 78%; OR: 0.015, p = .005).
• Treatment of PANS with propofol was a negative prognostic factor (OR: 0.112, p = .0008).
• Generalized PAS accounted for most seizure cases and were more frequently fatal than focal or unknown-type seizures.
• Pretreatment with levetiracetam (LEV1 protocol) showed a trend toward improved survival (100% vs. 60.6% in untreated cats), though not statistically significant (p = .06).
• Shunt morphology, method of attenuation, and study period (early vs. late) were not significantly associated with 30-day survival.
• Electrolyte, glucose, and ammonia abnormalities were not strongly linked to survival outcomes in this study.
• Majority of PAS-related deaths were due to uncontrolled generalized seizures or euthanasia because of severity.