Sex identification in juvenile and adult Indonesian blue-tongued skinks (Tiliqua gigas) through cystoscopy and accuracy of contrast radiography.

OBJECTIVE: To describe a nonsurgical endoscopic technique for sex identification in Indonesian blue-tongued skinks (Tiliqua gigas) and to assess accuracy of contrast radiography of the hemipenile/hemiclitoral pouches. ANIMALS: 42 clinically healthy Indonesian blue-tongued skinks between 6 months and 3 years old and weighing between 22 and 550 g. METHODS: Cystoscopy was performed under general anesthesia. Gonads were visualized through the transparency of the urinary bladder, and their gross morphology was described. Contrast was applied in the tail pouches before obtaining full-body radiographs. Two radiologists, blinded to the sex of the skink, evaluated the radiographs. RESULTS: Cystoscopy was achieved in all 42 skinks. Visualization of the gonads through the urinary bladder was possible in 41 (98%; 95% CI, 87% to 99%) of the skinks, with 18 of them identified as males and 23 identified as females. Median procedure time was 60 seconds (range, 25 to 180 seconds) and was not associated with procedure order (-0.69; 95% CI, -1.83 to 0.45) or with the weight (0.02 g; 95% CI, -0.07 to 1.0) or the identified sex (11.7; 95% CI, -15.07 to 38.45) of the skink. Radiographs had a sensitivity of 69.6% (95% CI, 47.1% to 86.8%) and a specificity of 75.0% (47.6% to 92.7%) to identify female skinks. All the skinks recovered uneventfully. CLINICAL RELEVANCE: Cystoscopic sex identification is feasible in Indonesian blue-tongued skinks of various age and size. Considering the difficulty in identifying their sex otherwise, this technique could provide a significant improvement in the veterinary care of this species. In this population, contrast radiographs showed limited accuracy for sex identification.

Three-dimensional electrical impedance tomography to study regional ventilation/perfusion ratios in anesthetized pigs.

This study aimed to develop a three-dimensional (3-D) method for assessing ventilation/perfusion (V/Q̇) ratios in a pig model of hemodynamic perturbations using electrical impedance tomography (EIT). To evaluate the physiological coherence of changes in EIT-derived V/Q̇ ratios, global EIT-derived V/Q̇ mismatches were compared with global gold standards. The study found regional heterogeneity in the distribution of V/Q̇ ratios in both the ventrodorsal and craniocaudal directions. Although global EIT-derived indices of V/Q̇ mismatch consistently underestimated both low and high V/Q̇ mismatch compared with global gold standards, the direction of the change was similar. We made the software available at no cost for other researchers to use. Future studies should compare regional V/Q̇ ratios determined by our method against other regional, high-resolution methods.NEW & NOTEWORTHY In this study, we introduce a novel 3-D method for assessing ventilation-perfusion (V/Q̇) ratios using electrical impedance tomography (EIT). Heterogeneity in V/Q̇ distribution showcases the significant potential for enhanced understanding of pulmonary conditions. This work signifies a substantial step forward in the application of EIT for monitoring and managing lung diseases.

Cricopharyngeal and thyropharyngeal myectomy for management of cricopharyngeal achalasia in a 6-month-old coton de Tulear dog.

A 6-week-old intact female coton de Tulear dog presented to a veterinary teaching hospital (VTH) internal medicine service for dysphagia that was persistent since birth. The patient was diagnosed with cricopharyngeal achalasia based on a fluoroscopic swallow study. To facilitate surgical intervention, a percutaneous endoscopic gastrostomy (PEG) tube was placed to bypass the upper esophageal sphincter and provide nutritional support until the dog was larger. At 6 mo of age, the dog underwent unilateral cricopharyngeal and thyropharyngeal myectomy. Marked improvement in dysphagia was noted immediately postoperatively. Improvement in dysphagia persisted in this dog, with continued marked improvement in clinical signs noted 1 y postoperatively. Key clinical message: Cricopharyngeal achalasia can be successfully managed with surgical intervention with a good long-term prognosis. Before surgical intervention, nutritional support is of critical importance. A combined procedure of cricopharyngeal and thyropharyngeal myectomy may be associated with outcomes superior to those of alternative procedures.

Myectomie cricopharyngée et thyropharyngée pour prise en charge de l'achalasie cricopharyngée chez un chien coton de Tuléar âgé de 6 mois. Une chienne coton de Tuléar femelle intacte âgée de 6 semaines a été présentée au service de médecine interne d'un CHU vétérinaire pour une dysphagie persistante depuis la naissance. Le patient a reçu un diagnostic d'achalasie cricopharyngée sur la base d'une étude fluoroscopique de la déglutition. Pour faciliter l'intervention chirurgicale, un tube de gastrostomie endoscopique percutanée (PEG) a été placé pour contourner le sphincter supérieur de l'oesophage et fournir un soutien nutritionnel jusqu'à ce que le chien soit plus gros. À l'âge de 6 mois, le chien a subi une myectomie cricopharyngée et thyropharyngée unilatérale. Une nette amélioration de la dysphagie a été notée immédiatement après l'opération. L'amélioration de la dysphagie a persisté chez ce chien, avec une amélioration continue et marquée des signes cliniques notée 1 an après l'opération.Message clinique clé :L'achalasie cricopharyngée peut être gérée avec succès par une intervention chirurgicale avec un bon pronostic à long terme. Avant l'intervention chirurgicale, le soutien nutritionnel est d'une importance cruciale. Une procédure combinée de myectomie cricopharyngée et thyropharyngée peut être associée à des résultats supérieurs à ceux des procédures alternatives.(Traduit par Dr Serge Messier).

Combining ultrasound radiomics, complete blood count, and serum biochemical biomarkers for diagnosing intestinal disorders in cats using machine learning.

This retrospective analytical observational cohort study aimed to model and predict the classification of feline intestinal diseases from segmentations of a transverse section from small intestine ultrasound (US) image, complete blood count (CBC), and serum biochemical profile data using a variety of machine-learning approaches. In 149 cats from three institutions, images were obtained from cats with biopsy-confirmed small cell epitheliotropic lymphoma (lymphoma), inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), no pathology ("healthy"), and other conditions (warrant a biopsy for further diagnosis). CBC, blood serum chemistry, small intestinal ultrasound, and small intestinal biopsy were obtained within a 2-week interval. CBC and serum biomarkers and radiomic features were combined for modeling. Four classification schemes were investigated: (1) normal versus abnormal; (2) warranting or not warranting a biopsy; (3) lymphoma, IBD, healthy, or other conditions; and (4) lymphoma, IBD, or other conditions. Two feature selection methods were used to identify the top 3, 5, 10, and 20 features, and six machine learning models were trained. The average (95% CI) performance of models for all combinations of features, numbers of features, and types of classifiers was 0.886 (0.871-0.912) for Model 1 (normal vs. abnormal), 0.751 (0.735-0.818) for Model 2 (biopsy vs. no biopsy), 0.504 (0.450-0.556) for Model 3 (lymphoma, IBD, healthy, or other), and 0.531 (0.426-0.589), for Model 4 (lymphoma, IBD, or other). Our findings suggest model accuracies above 0.85 can be achieved in Model 1 and 2, and that including CBC and biochemistry data with US radiomics data did not significantly improve accuracy in our models.

Canine intrahepatic portosystemic shunts: Interlobar and intralobar classifications.

This two-part study design showed that a canine congenital intrahepatic portosystemic shunt (IPSS) may be classified by its location within a liver fissure (interlobar) or lobe (intralobar). A prospective anatomic study reviewed normal canine liver morphology and showed the CT angiography (CTA) appearance of the normal canine ductus venosus (DV), which was confirmed via dissection and literature review to be between the papillary process and left-lateral liver lobe (in the fissure for ligamentum venosum). A retrospective multi-institutional case series documented the frequency of imaging findings in 56 dogs with a single IPSS that underwent portal CTA at Cornell University or the Schwarzman Animal Medical Center between June 2008 and August 2022. An interlobar IPSS was seen in 24 of 56 (43%) dogs, all arose from the left portal branch except one. These shunts were typically near the median plane, remained interlobar throughout the course, and were nearly always (96%) craniodorsal to the porta hepatis. Four types were distinguished: patent DV (11 dogs), left interlobar (11 dogs), right interlobar (1 dog), and ventral interlobar (1 dog). Only about half (46%) were in the fissure for ligamentum venosum and therefore classified as a patent DV. An intralobar IPSS was seen in 32 of 56 (57%) dogs, most (88%) originated from the right portal branch and were in the right-lateral liver lobe (21 dogs) or caudate process (7 dogs). During canine portal CTA, documenting the interlobar or intralobar location of an IPSS might increase the consistency and validity of IPSS description.

Idiopathic Left Ventricular Apical Aneurysm in a Sailor With Moderate Transient Chest Pain: A Unique Perspective on an Atypical Presentation in the Military Population.

Left ventricular (LV) apical aneurysm is a rare condition that carries a high risk of fatal cardiac rupture. Wall ruptures are an uncommon catastrophic complication after acute transmural myocardial infarction. Rarely is the rupture only contained by an adherent pericardium or hematoma creating a pseudoaneurysm. This clinical finding calls for emergent surgical intervention. If no ruptures are detectable and myocardium wall integrity is verified, the diagnosis of a true aneurysm can be made to be repaired via elective surgery. The etiological differential for a patient with an LV aneurysm in the setting of normal coronaries and in the absence of prior cardiac surgery remains broad, including traumatic, infectious, and infiltrative causes. In this case report, we demonstrate an atypical and rare presentation of an idiopathic LV apical aneurysm in a physically fit, active duty male in the U.S. Navy.

Metacarpophalangeal Joint Pathology and Bone Mineral Density Increase with Exercise but Not with Incidence of Proximal Sesamoid Bone Fracture in Thoroughbred Racehorses.

Proximal sesamoid bone (PSB) fracture is the leading cause of fatal musculoskeletal injury in Thoroughbred racehorses in Hong Kong and the US. Efforts are underway to investigate diagnostic modalities that could help identify racehorses at increased risk of fracture; however, features associated with PSB fracture risk are still poorly understood. The objectives of this study were to (1) investigate third metacarpal (MC3) and PSB density and mineral content using dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry (DXA), computed tomography (CT), Raman spectroscopy, and ash fraction measurements, and (2) investigate PSB quality and metacarpophalangeal joint (MCPJ) pathology using Raman spectroscopy and CT. Forelimbs were collected from 29 Thoroughbred racehorse cadavers (n = 14 PSB fracture, n = 15 control) for DXA and CT imaging, and PSBs were sectioned for Raman spectroscopy and ash fraction measurements. Bone mineral density (BMD) was greater in MC3 condyles and PSBs of horses with more high-speed furlongs. MCPJ pathology, including palmar osteochondral disease (POD), MC3 condylar sclerosis, and MC3 subchondral lysis were greater in horses with more high-speed furlongs. There were no differences in BMD or Raman parameters between fracture and control groups; however, Raman spectroscopy and ash fraction measurements revealed regional differences in PSB BMD and tissue composition. Many parameters, including MC3 and PSB bone mineral density, were strongly correlated with total high-speed furlongs.

Development of a minimally invasive endoscopic technique for excisional biopsy of the axillary lymph nodes in dogs.

OBJECTIVE: To develop and describe a minimally invasive technique for excisional biopsy of the axillary lymph nodes in dogs. STUDY DESIGN: Descriptive cadaver and clinical case series. ANIMALS: Four canine cadavers and three clinical patients. METHODS: A 3D computed tomographic reconstruction of the canine axilla was used to identify an optimal avenue of approach to the lymph nodes. This approach was refined using endoscopic techniques in four cadavers (six procedures) and potential surgical hazards, landmarks, and the surgical time required for excisional biopsy of the nodes was recorded. The procedure was then performed in three clinical cases. RESULTS: Axillary lymph node removal was achieved using an endoscopic technique with surgical times of 58 and 35 minutes in two of three clinical cases. The third case required conversion to an open approach after endoscopic identification of the node. No major complications were encountered. CONCLUSION: Excisional biopsy of the axillary lymph nodes can be performed successfully using a minimally invasive technique in the dog. Further investigation in clinical cases is needed to determine the risks and complications of this procedure. CLINICAL SIGNIFICANCE: Minimally invasive excisional biopsy of the axillary lymph nodes in dogs can be performed and may have a role in assisting with staging and local disease control in oncologic cases.

Laparoscopic vertical sleeve gastrectomy in felines: A cadaveric feasibility study and experimental case series in two cats.

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the feasibility of laparoscopic vertical sleeve gastrectomy (LVSG) in feline cadavers using endoscopic stapling equipment and report clinical outcomes in two live feline subjects. STUDY DESIGN: Cadaveric study and experimental case series. ANIMALS: Ten feline cadavers; two feline subjects. METHODS: LVSG technique was refined on feline cadavers and included retraction of the liver, dissection of the stomach, assessment of proper location for gastrectomy via stapling, and leak testing. Appropriateness of gastrectomy, gastrectomy %, surgical times and complications were recorded. The procedure was performed on two live feline subjects, and they were followed for 4 months to report surgical complications. RESULTS: LVSG was completed in 9/10 cadavers and both live patients. Stenosis at the incisura was recorded in 2/9 cadavers. No obvious leaks were seen in the 8 cadavers that were tested or either live patient. The mean surgical time for all cadaver procedures and live patients was 110.4 and 115 minutes, respectively. Mean weight of resected cadaver stomach was 10 g and the mean % of the total stomach weight resected was 27.6%. No intra- or postoperative surgical complications occurred in the live subjects. CONCLUSION: LVSG technique appears feasible and safe for use in live patients. CLINICAL RELEVANCE: This LVSG technique may be safely used for partial gastric resection in cats. Further studies are necessary to determine if it is effective at reversing the effects of obesity and diabetes in this population.

3D printed cannulas for use in laparoscopic surgery in feline patients: A cadaveric study and case series.

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate custom 3D printed laparoscopic cannulas (3DPC) in a feline cadaveric abdominal surgery model and report their use in two live feline subjects. STUDY DESIGN: Experimental cadaver study, live subject case series. ANIMALS: Ten feline cadavers; two feline subjects. METHODS: Custom 3DPCs were initially modeled in a PLA filament material and then created in an autoclavable dental resin for use in live patients. The surgery time, number of surgical collisions and cannula complications were recorded during cadaver procedures before and after use of 3DPCs. Cannula complications were recorded during live procedures and patients were followed to suture removal to record any incisional complications. RESULTS: There was a significant reduction in mean surgical time (125.6 vs. 95.2 min, p = 0.03), mean number of instrument collisions (6.8 vs. 2.6, p = 0.03), and mean number of cannula complications (10 vs. 2.2, p = 0.03) with the use of only 3DPCs during the procedure. During the live procedures the use of the 3DPCs was successful and no postoperative complications occurred at the incision sites. CONCLUSION: The use of customized 3DPCs may improve surgical dexterity and decrease complications in advanced procedures and was not associated with any clinical complications in two cats. The use of 3DPCs in veterinary medicine may allow for wider practice of laparoscopic techniques in small animals.

Intra- and interobserver assessments of intestinal wall thickness and segmentations from transverse sections of feline abdominal ultrasound images.

Measurements of intestinal wall thicknesses from ultrasound imaging (US) are routinely used to support diagnoses of intestinal disorders in cats, however published studies describing observer agreement are currently lacking. The aim of this retrospective, observer agreement study was to quantify inter- and intraobserver repeatability and agreement in the measurement of intestinal wall layer thicknesses and the segmentation of transverse sections of small intestines in US images of 20 cats. Intestinal wall layer thickness measurements of the mucosa, submucosa, muscularis, serosa layer, and total thickness of these layers were performed on five cats with small cell epitheliotropic lymphoma, five with inflammatory bowel disease, and 10 with other conditions. Thickness measurements and the segmentation encompassing the serosa layer were obtained from five observers four times non-sequentially. The average standard deviation in thickness measurements (95% confidence interval) in the mucosa, submucosa, muscularis, serosa, and total thickness were 0.35 (0.07-0.95), 0.24 (0.07-0.52), 0.22 (0.06-0.49), 0.20 (0.05-0.49), and 0.57 (0.11-1.60) mm, respectively. The average intraclass correlation coefficients, which estimates the degree of consistency in thickness measurements and segmentation areas for each observer, ranged from 0.355 to 0.870 and 0.850 to 0.993, respectively. The interclass correlation coefficient, which estimates the degree of consistency when measuring a thickness or segmentation area over all observers ranged from 0.115 to 0.753, and 0.811 to 0.902, respectively. The overall average Dice Coefficient, which estimates the extent of overlap of the segmentations for all observers was 0.957 (0.933 to 0.972). Our results suggest segmentations of small intestines have a higher interobserver agreement than measurements of intestinal wall thicknesses.

Radiomics in veterinary medicine: Overview, methods, and applications.

Radiomics, or quantitative image analysis from radiographic image data, borrows the suffix from other emerging -omics fields of study, such as genomics, proteomics, and metabolomics. This report provides an overview of the general principles of how radiomic features are computed, describes major types of morphological, first order, and texture features, and the applications, challenges, and opportunities of radiomics as applied in veterinary medicine. Some advantages radiomics has over traditional semantic radiological features include standardized methodology in computing semantic features, the ability to compute features in multi-dimensional images, their newfound associations with genomic and pathological abnormalities, and the number of perceptible and imperceptible features available for regression or classification modeling. Some challenges in deploying radiomics in a clinical setting include sensitivity to image acquisition settings and image artifacts, pre- and post-image reconstruction and calculation settings, variability in feature estimates stemming from inter- and intra-observer contouring errors, and challenges with software and data harmonization and generalizability of findings given the challenges of small sample size and patient selection bias in veterinary medicine. Despite this, radiomics has enormous potential in patient-centric diagnostics, prognosis, and theragnostics. Fully leveraging the utility of radiomics in veterinary medicine will require inter-institutional collaborations, data harmonization, and data sharing strategies amongst institutions, transparent and robust model development, and multi-disciplinary efforts within and outside the veterinary medical imaging community.

Assessing the outcomes and experiences of care from the perspective of people living with chronic conditions, to support countries in developing people-centred policies and practices: study protocol of the International Survey of People Living with Chronic Conditions (PaRIS survey).

INTRODUCTION: In view of growing populations with chronic conditions, many countries are redesigning their health systems. However, little information is available about how health systems perform from the perspective of people living with chronic conditions. The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) Member States therefore mandated the OECD to initiate the International Survey of People Living with Chronic Conditions (PaRIS survey), which aims to provide insight in outcomes and experiences of care as reported by people living with chronic conditions. The PaRIS-SUR consortium has been tasked by the OECD to support the development and implementation of the survey. METHODS AND ANALYSIS: As primary care services play a pivotal role in the management of chronic conditions, the PaRIS survey will be implemented in the primary care setting. Data will be collected with a survey among users of primary care services aged 45 years or older, of whom many have chronic conditions. An additional survey is conducted among their primary care providers. The nested study design will allow analysis of the patient-reported data in relation to characteristics of and care provided by primary care providers within and across countries. In 2022, the survey will be tested in a Field Trial in participating countries. Data for cross-country comparison will be collected by the Main Survey in 2023. ETHICS AND DISSEMINATION: Informed consent will be obtained from primary care providers and service users. National Project Managers search ethical approval of the survey in their country, if required. Reporting by the OECD will focus on questions for international comparison. A secured information technology platform will be developed for participants and stakeholders in countries to receive feedback and answer their own questions. Findings will also be disseminated through an international OECD flagship report, conferences, scientific papers and policy briefs, to inform strategies to improve care for people living with chronic conditions throughout the world.

Ultrasound is an accurate method compared to radiography for diagnosing the presence of acute hip luxation in cadaver dogs and can identify the direction of luxation with variable reliability.

Acute hip luxation is a common musculoskeletal injury in dogs, with radiographs being the preferred imaging modality for confirming the diagnosis. In large animal and human medicine, ultrasound is often utilized for this purpose. The objectives of this three-part study were to utilize a canine cadaver model to establish ultrasonographic features of hip luxation and evaluate the accuracy and reliability for diagnosing hip luxation with ultrasound. For the first prospective, exploratory study, a cadaver model was developed that allowed manual luxation and subsequent ultrasonography of the hip joint while in four directions of luxation. For the second prospective, anatomic study, a description of the ultrasonographic features for each direction of luxation was created. For the third prospective diagnostic accuracy, observer agreement study, 16 residency-trained and intern veterinarians without prior experience in this technique performed randomized, repeated ultrasound exams on cadaver hips assigned as normal or luxated (equally distributed between the 4 directions). A total of 1140 hip ultrasounds were performed with good accuracy (median, 90.8%; range, 61.4-100%), sensitivity (89.5%), and specificity (80.0%) for diagnosing the presence of hip luxation. Accuracy for identifying the correct quadrant of luxation was significantly lower (mean, 58.6%; range, 24.6-90.8%; P < 0.001). Intraobserver accuracy agreement varied widely from none to almost perfect agreement, and interobserver agreement ranged from slight to moderate agreement. The results of this study supported the use of ultrasound for diagnosing the presence of hip luxation but did not support replacing radiographs for diagnosing the direction of luxation.

Correlating Sensory Assessment of Smoke-Tainted Wines with Inter-Laboratory Study Consensus Values for Volatile Phenols.

Vineyard exposure to wildfire smoke can taint grapes and wine. To understand the impact of this taint, it is imperative that the analytical methods used are accurate and precise. This study compared the variance across nine commercial and research laboratories following quantitative analysis of the same set of smoke-tainted wines. In parallel, correlations between the interlaboratory consensus values for smoke-taint markers and sensory analyses of the same smoke-tainted wines were evaluated. For free guaiacol, the mean accuracy was 94 ± 11% in model wine, while the free cresols and 4-methylguaiacol showed a negative bias and/or decreased precision relative to guaiacol. Similar trends were observed in smoke-tainted wines, with the cresols and glycosidically bound markers demonstrating high variance. Collectively, the interlaboratory results show that data from a single laboratory can be used quantitatively to understand smoke-taint. Results from different laboratories, however, should not be directly compared due to the high variance between study participants. Correlations between consensus compositional data and sensory evaluations suggest the risk of perceivable smoke-taint can be predicted from free cresol concentrations, overcoming limitations associated with the occurrence of some volatile phenols, guaiacol in particular, as natural constituents of some grape cultivars and of the oak used for barrel maturation.

Comparison of Surgical Outcomes Associated With Compression Secondary to Hemorrhage and Intervertebral Disk Extrusions in Dogs.

Acute intervertebral disk extrusion (IVDE) is one of the most commonly reported neurologic disorders seen in veterinary practice. There is a recognized subset of IVDE cases that have a hemorrhagic inflammatory reaction within the epidural space that causes compression in addition to compression from herniated disk material. Previous reports have been conflicting in the outcomes of these cases. The goals of this retrospective case-control cross-sectional study are to (1) compare the success rate of routine surgical decompression in dogs with DEEH compression compared to Modified Frankel Score (MFS) matched dogs with non-hemorrhagic disk extrusions; (2) evaluate the extent of spinal cord compression on MRI compared to final patient outcomes in DEEH compression and (3) determine the surgical compression to decompression ratio and its relation to patient outcomes in cases of DEEH compression. A total of 143 dogs were included in this study and divided into two groups: DEEH compression dogs (n = 78) and non-hemorrhagic IVDE dogs (n = 65). Outcomes were assigned for each patient [0 = deceased, 1 = alive and non-ambulatory (MFS 0-3), 2 = alive and ambulatory (MFS 4 or 5)] in both groups. Outcomes of DEEH and non-hemorrhagic IVDE did not differ when taken to surgery with comparable success rates when stratified by MFS. Similarly, outcomes did not differ between DEEH and non-hemorrhagic IVDE dogs when assessed by compression to decompression ratio. Dogs with DEEH compression had more compressed sites than dogs with non-hemorrhagic IVDE (P = 0.001) and had more sites decompressed surgically than dogs with non-hemorrhagic IVDE (P < 0.001). Consequently, the compression to decompression ratio did not differ between the two groups (P = 0.52). Our results support the finding that when a similar level of surgical decompression is achieved, dogs with DEEH compression have similar outcomes to dogs with non-hemorrhagic IVDE for similar degrees of neurological dysfunction.

Serial evaluation of thoracic radiographs and acute phase proteins in dogs with pneumonia.

BACKGROUND: Acute phase proteins (APP) may guide treatment of pneumonia in dogs but correlations with radiographic abnormalities are poorly characterized. OBJECTIVES: Develop a thoracic radiographic severity scoring system (TRSS), assess correlation of radiographic changes with APP concentrations, and compare time to APP and radiograph normalization with duration of antimicrobials treatment. ANIMALS: Sixteen client-owned dogs, 12 with aspiration pneumonia, and 4 with community-acquired pneumonia. METHODS: Concentrations of C-reactive protein (CRP), serum amyloid A (SAA), and haptoglobin were measured on days 1, 3, 7, 14, 28, and 60 and orthogonal 2-view thoracic radiographs were obtained on days 1, 7, 14, 28, and 60. Treatment was clinician-guided and blinded to APP concentrations. Radiographic severity scores were assigned by blinded, randomized retrospective review by 2 board-certified radiologists with arbitration by a third radiologist. RESULTS: Median (interquartile range [IQR]) time to normalization of CRP (7 days [7-14]) and SAA concentrations (7 days [7-14]) were shorter than antimicrobial treatment duration (17.5 days [14.5-33.5]; P = .001 and .002, respectively) and TRSS normalization (14 days [8.8-52], P = .02 and .02, respectively). The CRP and SAA concentrations were positively correlated with TRSS (CRP rs , 0.643; SAA rs , 0.634; both P < .0001). Both CRP and SAA identified normal thoracic radiographs area under the curve (AUC) 0.873 and 0.817, respectively, both P < .0001. Interobserver agreement for TRSS assignment was moderate (κ, .499; P < .0001). CONCLUSION AND CLINICAL IMPORTANCE: Concentrations of CRP and SAA normalized before radiographic resolution and before clinicians discontinued antimicrobial treatment. The CRP and SAA concentrations may guide duration of antimicrobial treatment for dogs with pneumonia.

Separable Confident Transductive Learning for Dairy Cows Teat-End Condition Classification.

Teat-end health assessments are crucial to maintain milk quality and dairy cow health. One approach to automate teat-end health assessments is by using a convolutional neural network to classify the magnitude of teat-end alterations based on digital images. This approach has been demonstrated as feasible with GoogLeNet but there remains a number of challenges, such as low performance and comparing performance with different ImageNet models. In this paper, we present a separable confident transductive learning (SCTL) model to improve the performance of teat-end image classification. First, we propose a separation loss to ameliorate the inter-class dispersion. Second, we generate high confident pseudo labels to optimize the network. We further employ transductive learning to narrow the gap between training and test datasets with categorical maximum mean discrepancy loss. Experimental results demonstrate that the proposed SCTL model consistently achieves higher accuracy across all seventeen different ImageNet models when compared with retraining of original approaches.

Animal Models of Bone Marrow Lesions in Osteoarthritis.

Bone marrow lesions are abnormalities in magnetic resonance images that have been associated with joint pain and osteoarthritis in clinical studies. Increases in the volume of bone marrow lesions have been associated with progression of joint degeneration, leading to the suggestion that bone marrow lesions may be an early indicator of-or even a contributor to-cartilage loss preceding irreversible damage to the joint. Despite evidence that bone marrow lesions play a role in osteoarthritis pathology, very little is known about the natural history of bone marrow lesions and their contribution to joint degeneration. As a result, there are limited data regarding the cell activity within a bone marrow lesion and any associated bone-cartilage cross-talk. Animal models provide the best approach for understanding bone marrow lesions at their early, reversible stages. Here, we review the few animal studies of bone marrow lesions. An ideal animal model of a bone marrow lesion occurs in joints large enough to accurately measure bone marrow lesion volume. Additionally, the ideal animal model would facilitate the study of bone-cartilage cross-talk by generating the bone marrow lesion immediately adjacent to subchondral bone and would do so without causing direct damage to neighboring soft tissues to isolate the effects of the bone marrow lesion on cartilage loss. Early reports demonstrate the feasibility of such an animal model. Given the irreversible nature of osteoarthritic changes in the joint, factors such as bone marrow lesions that are present early in disease pathogenesis remain an enticing target for new therapeutic approaches. © 2022 The Authors. JBMR Plus published by Wiley Periodicals LLC on behalf of American Society for Bone and Mineral Research.