Correlation of Plain Radiographic and Lumbar Myelographic Findings With Surgical Findings in Thoracolumbar Disc Disease

摘要

Thoracolumbar disk disease is a common problem in veterinary medicine, especially in chondrody-strophic breeds of dogs, Successful decompression relies on accurately localizing the involved disk space. Whether myelography has a role in managing spinalproblems remains uncertain. Both plain radiographs and lumbar myelograms were correlated with the operative findings in 70 dogs suspected of having thoracolum-bar disk protrusions. The dogs had been referred for surgical decompression. Nearly half the dogs were Dachshunds and 14% were Cocker Spaniels. Myelograms were done at the L4-5 level using iohexol, which contains 30 mg of iodine per mL. Hemilaminectomy was done at the level of suspected cord compression on the side of the disk prolapse.