Clinical management of lipomas in dogs under primary care in the UK.

Lipomas are relatively common and biologically benign masses of mesenchymal origin consisting of adipocytes. This study reports benchmark data on the clinical management and outcomes of lipomas in dogs under UK primary veterinary care. The study used a cross-sectional analysis of cohort clinical data from dogs that were under veterinary care at practices participating within VetCompass from January 1, 2013 to December 31, 2013. Descriptive and analytic statistics characterised the clinical management and outcomes following presumptive lipoma diagnosis. The study included 2765 lipoma cases from 384 284 dogs under UK veterinary care during 2013. Diagnostics included fine needle aspirate in 1119 (40.5 per cent) cases, biopsy in 215 (7.8 per cent) cases and diagnostic imaging in 11 (0.4 per cent) cases. Overall, 525 (19.0 per cent) cases were managed surgically. Of the surgical cases, 307 (58.5 per cent) solely had mass removal whilst 218 (41.5 per cent) included another procedure during the same surgical episode. A surgical drain was placed during surgery in 90 (17.1 per cent) cases. Wound breakdown was reported in 14 (2.7 per cent) surgical procedures. Wound infection followed surgery in 11 (2.1 per cent) dogs. The findings provide veterinarians with an evidence base that benchmarks how lipoma cases are currently managed in the UK, but these results do not necessarily reflect optimal management or best practice.

Lipoma in dogs under primary veterinary care in the UK: prevalence and breed associations.

BACKGROUND: Lipomas are masses of mesenchymal origin, comprising of adipocytes, and are often clinically unremarkable but can be alarming to owners. Although lipomas are reportedly common in dogs, no studies have specifically investigated risk factors associated with their occurrence. This study was a large-scale retrospective analysis of electronic patient records of dogs attending practices participating in VetCompass™. Univariable and multivariable logistic regression methods were used to evaluate associations between risk factors and primary-care veterinary diagnosis of lipoma. RESULTS: From 384,284 dogs under veterinary care during 2013 at 215 primary practice clinics in the UK, there were 2765 lipoma cases identified giving a one-year prevalence of 1.94% (95% CI: 1.87-2.01). Breeds with the highest lipoma prevalence included Weimaraner (7.84%, 95% CI 6.46-9.40), Dobermann Pinscher (6.96%, 95% CI 5.67-8.44), German Pointer (5.23%, 95% CI 3.93-6.80), Springer Spaniel (5.19%, 95% CI 4.76-5.66), and Labrador Retriever (5.15%, 95% CI 4.90-5.41). Dogs with an adult bodyweight equal or higher than their breed/sex mean had 1.96 (95% CI 1.81-2.14, P <  0.001) times the odds of lipoma compared with dogs that weighed below their breed/sex mean. The odds of lipoma increased as adult bodyweight increased. Increased age was strongly associated with increasing odds of lipoma. Compared with dogs aged 3.0 to < 6.0 years, dogs aged 9.0 - < 12.0 years had 17.52 times the odds (95% CI 14.71-20.85, P <  0.001) of lipoma. Neutered males (OR: 1.99, 95% CI 1.69-2.36, P <  0.001) and neutered females (OR: 1.62, 95% CI 1.37-1.91, P <  0.001) had higher odds than entire females. Insured dogs had 1.78 (95% CI 1.53-2.07, P <  0.001) times the odds of lipoma compared with uninsured dogs. CONCLUSIONS: Lipomas appear to be a relatively common diagnosis in primary-care practice. Certain breeds were identified with remarkably high lipoma prevalence, highlighting the risk that owners should be prepared for. Lipoma predisposition of larger bodyweight individuals within breed/sex suggests that being overweight or obese may be a predisposing factor but would need further work to confirm.