Diagnosis and Medical Management of Prostate Disease in the Dog

摘要

THE PROSTATE is the only accessory sex gland in the male dog. Diseases of the prostate gland are common in the dog. One study reported an overall incidence of canine prostatic disease of 2.5% in all male dogs. The incidence is higher in older dogs andreaches 8% in male dogs older than 10 years. Therefore, special attention should be paid to the examination of the prostate in medical check-ups of older male dogs. With the exception of prostatic neoplasia, which occurs with the same frequency in intact and neutered animals, prostatic disease is a disease complex of intact males. With the complex of prostatic disease, benign hyperplasia, squamous metaplasia, prostatic and paraprostatic cyst, prostatitis, prostatic abscess, and prostatic neoplasia arerecognized as separate clinical entities. In initiation of proper treatment, it is essential for the clinician not only to diagnose the presence of prostatic disease, but also to identify the specific pathological process. Because there are variation andoverlap in history, physical examination, laboratory results, and results of imaging studies among the different conditions, identification of the specific pathological process is often a diagnostic challenge. In this article, we uptake the diagnostic approach to canine prostatic disease, discuss the separate diseases of the prostate and their clinical manifestations, and review the medical management of these prostatic diseases.