Pediculectomy for the treatment of thoracolumbar disk disease

• Main Authors: Leonardo Martins Leal, Tiago Barbalho Lima, Leandro Luis Martins, Vera Márcia Mucsi Cipolli
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: Universidade Federal de Santa Catarina 2011-06-01
• Series: Biotemas
• Subjects: Dog; Fenestration; Pediculectomy; Thoracolumbar disk
• Online Access: http://www.biotemas.ufsc.br/volumes/pdf/volume242/103-107.pdf

Thoracolumbar disk disease is a condition associated with spinal cord compression that leads to the extrusion of the nucleus pulposus of an intervertebral disk. It can cause mild pain to very severe symptoms including complete paralysis of the pelvic limbs. The treatment for this disease depends on the location and severity of the compression. The objective of this study was to use pediculectomy surgery technique, for spinal decompression, on a seven-year-old female dog that was a mixed breed, suffered from pelvic limb paresis, and was diagnosed with dorsolateral thoracolumbar disk disease. A disk fenestration was also performed in the area to prevent the recurrence of the symtoms. The pediculectomy technique involves creating a slot in the lateral area of the vertebras to preserve the articular facets. Thirty days after the surgery the patient was walking normally. The pediculectomy technique is a good surgical option because it promotes decompression, and extruded material can be removed, which leads to less instability decreases the chance of vertebral dislocation and allows disk fenestration to be performed during the same surgical period. Pediculectomy was effective in the treatment of this patient.