Case of the week 15th Sept 2024
Publication Date: 2019-03-25
3 images
Quiz
- The abnormal abdominal structure is:Fluid opaque
No :-( Remember fluid and soft tissue have a similar radioopacity and cannot be distinguish from one another on radiographs.Soft tissue opaque
No :-( Remember fluid and soft tissue have a similar radioopacity and cannot be distinguish from one another on radiographs.Fat opaque
Yes :-)Mineral opaque
No :-(
Findings
There is wet hair artifact along the ventral abdomen. The serosal detail is normal.
Within the left mid ventral abdomen, there is a large (approximately 20 x 15 cm), ovoid, fat opacity structure. This structure causes lateral deviation of the left body wall, rightward and dorsal deviation of the colon and small intestines, and cranial deviation of the tail of the spleen.
The stomach is mildly gas distended. The small intestines are diffusely gas and fluid/soft tissue opaque, and are normal and uniform in diameter. There are fusiform to rectangular osseous opacities within the colon.
The liver, spleen, kidneys, and urinary bladder are normal.
Diagnosis
- The large intra-abdominal fat opaque mass is consistent with an intra-abdominal lipoma. Liposarcoma cannot be entirely excluded.
- Mineral foreign bodies within the colon, with no evidence of obstruction.
- The appearance of the stomach and small intestines, in addition to the osseous foreign bodies in the colon, may indicate gastritis/gastroenteritis.
Discussion
The dog was treated symptomatically and improved clinically. Further investigation of the incidentally found intra-abdominal lipoma was not pursued at the owners' wishes.
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