496Brief Communication vitamin E [l]. Intramuscular administration in this dog may have made elimination of the compound more difficult than oral administration would have.Although no assay of selenium concentration could be done on formalinized tissues, the history of repeated administration of a selenium-tocopherol emulsion designed for the treatment and prevention of selenium deficiency in cattle indicates that the lesions seen were the result of chronic selenium toxicosis.
References
Pericardial Mesothelioma with Cardiac Tamponade in a DogB. 0. IKEDE, A. ZUBAIDY, and C. W. GILL Mesotheliomas are rare mesodermal neoplasms that arise from the mesothelial cells and supporting tissues covering the pleural, pericardial and peritoneal cavities, including the tunica vaginalis [7]. There is a strong association between pleural mesotheliomas and asbestosis in man [6], whereas in cattle, peritoneal mesotheliomas often are congenital [l]. In other species, however, spontaneous mesotheliomas have been reported in mature animals without any associated causative or epizootiological factors. In domestic animals and in man, primary cardiac neoplasms are considered rare [4, 51. Clinical signs of cardiac neoplasms have been reported in man and animals and often are non-specific [2].An 1 1-year-old castrated male basset hound dog had pericardial effusion 7 months before presentation. The condition was relieved by pericardiocentesis. Three weeks before admission, the dog developed a non-productive cough, a somewhat distended abdomen and decreased appetite. Physical examination showed bilaterally muffled heart sounds, weak femoral pulse and slow capillary refill time. Significant haematological changes were lymphopenia and a decreased platelet function, although the number of platelets was normal. An electrocardiogram showed a mild left shift in electrical axis, tachycardia and blunting of the QRS complexes. Moderate hepatomegaly, pleural effusion, pulmonary oedema, pericardial effusion and cardiomegaly were confirmed on plain radiographs. While in the clinic, the dog developed bloody diarrhea and vomiting but serological and faecal examinations for parvovirus and bacteria were negative. The dog became dehydrated and depressed. It was treated daily with amino- phylline (Stanlabs, Portland, Ore.), lasix (Hoechst, Montreal, Quebec) and ampicillin (Wyeth, Philadelphia, Pa.). In addition, more than 320 ml of fluid was withdrawn from the pericardium on two occasions within 10 days of admission. These measures led to only transient improvement in the condition of the dog.The withdrawn pericardial fluid was brown and sterile, and contained large cells with marked anisokaryosis, vacuolated cytoplasm, a moderate nuclear/cytoplasmic ratio and large single nucleoli. A nonseptic pericardial effusion probably caused by a heart base tumour was diagnosed. The dog began to deteriorate the 3rd day after the pericardial tap and was killed 2 days later.At necropsy, the pericardium was distended with more than 100 ml of blood-tinged, slightly t...
