Surgery and postoperative definitive radiotherapy for management of canine soft tissue sarcoma: a multi-institutional retrospective study of 272 dogs (2010-2020).

OBJECTIVE: To report local progression and survival in dogs following surgery and postoperative definitive radiotherapy (dRT) for management of soft tissue sarcoma (STS) and to evaluate risk factors for local progression and survival. METHODS: Records were retrospectively reviewed at 9 referral hospitals for dogs managed with postoperative dRT between January 1, 2010, and January 1, 2020, following surgery for STS. Data related to presentation, surgery, dRT, systemic therapy, and outcome were abstracted. Selected variables were assessed for association with local progression and overall survival. RESULTS: 272 dogs were included. Histologic grade was reported in 249 dogs: 102 were grade 1 (40.9%), 120 were grade 2 (48.2%), and 27 were grade 3 (10.8%). Local progression was suspected or confirmed in 56 dogs. Local progression rates were similar for grade 1 (24 of 89 [26.7%]), grade 2 (23 of 111 [20.7%]), and grade 3 tumors (6 of 22 [27.3%]). Previous recurrence (P = .010) and subsequent distant metastasis (P = .014) were associated with more frequent local progression; intensity-modulated radiotherapy was associated with decreased local progression (P = .025) compared to other forms of delivery. Age (P = .049), grade (P = .009), previous recurrence (P = .009), and institution type for surgery (P = .043) were associated with overall survival. CONCLUSIONS: Outcomes for most dogs were good; however, the frequency of local progression indicates an ongoing need to critically appraise local management strategies, particularly for low-grade STS. Intensity-modulated radiotherapy was associated with lower rates of local progression and may be preferred to less precise forms of delivery. CLINICAL RELEVANCE: These data may guide clinicians when making decisions regarding dRT for management of STS.

Association of mesenteric volvulus in police working dogs with and without a prior prophylactic laparoscopic gastropexy.

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the association of mesenteric volvulus (MV) in New York Police Department police working dogs (PWDs) with and without a prior prophylactic laparoscopic gastropexy (PLG). ANIMALS: 370 PWDs (82 with and 288 without PLG). METHODS: Medical records and surgery and radiology reports were reviewed from 2012 to 2022. Signalment, pertinent history (medical and surgical), gastropexy status, temperament, and training type were recorded. Statistical analysis was used to identify the relationship between prophylactic gastropexy and MV within the patient population. RESULTS: 3 cases of mesenteric volvulus were noted in this patient population. Two (2.4%) of the 82 PWDs that had undergone prophylactic laparoscopic gastropexy developed MV, whereas 1 (0.3%) of the 288 PWDs that had not undergone a gastropexy procedure developed MV. Police working dogs with PLG were estimated to be at 7.2 times greater odds of MV (point estimate OR, 7.18; 95% CI, 0.642 to 80.143); however, the low incidence of MV in this population limited statistical power, and thus this effect did not achieve statistical significance. Evaluation of MV incidence in additional populations of working dogs will allow greater precision in the point estimate. CLINICAL RELEVANCE: Prophylactic gastropexy may be associated with an increased risk for MV. However, patients without prophylactic gastropexy are at risk for gastric dilatation and volvulus, which is more common than MV. Therefore, the authors continue to recommend prophylactic gastropexy to decrease the risk for gastric dilatation and volvulus.

Can a Portable Balance System Predict Fall Risk in Community-Dwelling Older Women?

PURPOSE: Increased fall risk has been linked to age, being female, and age-related changes in the postural control system. The purpose of this study was to determine if a portable balance system could predict fall risk by determining the relationship among the modified Clinical Test for Sensory Interaction on Balance (mCTSIB) scores, age, the Activities-specific Balance Confidence Scale (ABC) score, and the Berg Balance Scale (BBS) score in community-dwelling older women. Insight into these relationships may facilitate early intervention and decrease fall risk in older women. METHODS: This study was a non-experimental, prospective, cross-sectional, exploratory analysis to determine the relationship among the mCTSIB, age, ABC, and BBS. Women aged 65 years and over were selected from two independent living facilities using a sample of convenience (n=42). RESULTS: The mCTSIB firm surface, eyes open and the ABC predicted fall risk (BBS) scores, F(2, 36)=35.72, p<0.001, R2=0.67, but adding age did not significantly improve the model, b= -0.17, t(36)= -1.71, p=0.10. CONCLUSION: A portable balance system may be an effective screening tool to predict fall risk in community-dwelling older women and may be used by a variety of allied health professionals. Postural sway, and perceived balance, predicted fall risk scores (BBS). More specifically, data obtained from the mCTSIB firm surface, eyes open test condition when combined with ABC scores could lead to identification of increased fall risk, allowing clinicians to recommend early treatment intervention to prevent future falls.

Outcome and postoperative complications in 73 dogs with thyroid carcinoma with gross vascular invasion managed with thyroidectomy.

Excellent outcomes have been reported following thyroidectomy for thyroid carcinoma in dogs, but outcomes for thyroid carcinomas with gross vascular invasion are poorly described. This study describes the clinical outcomes and complications in dogs with thyroid carcinomas with gross vascular invasion undergoing thyroidectomy. Medical records of dogs that underwent thyroidectomy between January 1st 2010 and December 31st 2019 were reviewed at 10 hospitals. Signalment, diagnostic data, primary and adjuvant treatments performed, and outcome were abstracted. Survival was calculated using Kaplan-Meier analysis. Multiple logistic regression was used to identify variables associated with disease-specific survival. Seventy-three dogs were included, of which 58 underwent unilateral thyroidectomy and 15 underwent bilateral thyroidectomy. Complications were reported in five dogs (three major, two minor; 6.8%) intraoperatively and 12 dogs (two major leading to death, 10 minor; 16.4%) postoperatively. Seven (9.6%) dogs developed locoregional recurrence at a median of 238 days postoperatively (range: 15-730 days). Distant metastasis was suspected or confirmed in nine dogs (12.3%) at a median of 375 days postoperatively (range: 50-890 days). Twenty-seven dogs (37%) received adjuvant therapy (chemotherapy: n = 21; radiotherapy: n = 6). Thirty-nine dogs were euthanized or died, with 20 deaths related to disease (n = 10) or of unknown cause (n = 10), 19 due to unrelated causes, and nine lost to follow-up. Median overall and disease-specific survival were 621 days and not reached respectively. One-year disease-specific survival rate was 82.5%. No variables were associated with disease-specific survival in our dataset. Surgery may be considered for loco-regional therapy in dogs with thyroid carcinoma with gross vascular invasion.

Does Hands-on Guarding Influence Performance on the Functional Gait Assessment?

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE: An accurate fall risk assessment is an important component of fall prevention, though a fall could occur during testing. To minimize this risk, different guarding methods are used, though there is disagreement regarding the optimal method. The purpose of this study was to compare the effect of 2 guarding methods, contact guarding (CG) and standby guarding (SG), on performance during the Functional Gait Assessment (FGA). We hypothesized that (1) there would not be a significant difference in FGA scores when comparing CG with SG, and (2) participants would not perceive a difference between the 2 guarding methods. METHODS: Twenty-three community-dwelling older adults, mean age 73.6 (SD = 6.2) years, participated in this study. Each participant completed 2 trials of the FGA, one with CG and another with SG. Guarding for all trials was provided by the same experienced physical therapist (PT) for this within-subjects design. All trials were video recorded for review by 2 PT raters who were blinded to the purpose of the study. RESULTS AND DISCUSSION: Functional Gait Assessment scores for the 2 PT raters indicated high internal agreement for both CG and SG conditions (CG: intraclass correlation coefficient [ICC] = 0.949; SG: ICC = 0.935), and CG FGA scores did not significantly differ from SG FGA scores (t22 = 0.15, P = .882). Furthermore, none of the participants perceived a difference in guarding methods. CONCLUSIONS: The results of this study indicate that hands-on guarding does not significantly influence performance on the FGA when the guarding is provided by an experienced PT and the participant is a community-dwelling older adult.