Conservative management of pelvic fractures in dogs and cats in Algiers: Incidence and long-term clinical outcomes

Abstract

Aim: We performed a retrospective study to evaluate clinical complications and outcomes associated with non-operative management of pelvic fractures in dogs and cats and described owner satisfaction. Materials and Methods: Based on radiographic findings and fracture location, case records were classified into two groups. Group 1 included animals with acetabulum involvement that underwent conservative treatment plus femoral head-and-neck excision. Group 2 included animals without acetabulum involvement that underwent conservative treatment only. Compliance with rest instructions, time to locomotion recovery, and the evaluation of persistent lameness were data collected from the questionnaire. The level of satisfaction was classified as excellent, good, or bad. Clinical outcome was evaluated at least 10 months after the fracture. Results: Pelvic injuries included sacroiliac luxations (59.52%) and ilial body (35.7%), acetabular (21.4%), pubic (21.4%), and ischial (14.28%) fractures alone or combined. According to the owners, the proposed strategy yielded good to excellent outcomes in dogs and cats in this study, with 95.23% of animals regaining full function of their hind limbs. Two dogs had slight chronic lameness, and some degree of gait abnormality persisted. Conclusion: Because of financial constraints, the chronicity of fractures, or lack of surgical techniques, the surgical treatment of pelvic fractures may not be possible. Non-operative treatment can then be considered to allow the animal to return to acceptable function.

Prevalence of pelvic fractures in cat and dogs: A retrospective study in 183 cases (2016-2020)

“…The incidence of acetabular fractures varies between 14% and 43% (Hardie et al, 1999;Boswell et al, 2001;Mesquita et al 2009). Bouabdallah et al (2020) reported the incidence of acetabulum and pubis fractures to be 21.4% in their study. In our study, these rates are 11.3% and 12.6%, respectively.…”

“…DeCamp (2005) stated that the most common fracture is the ilium fracture. Furthermore, Bouabdallah et al, (2020) reported in their study that the rate of ilium fractures among pelvic fractures was 35.7%. In the present study, we found that the rate of ilium fractures among pelvic fractures was 20.8%.…”

“…In our study, these rates are 11.3% and 12.6%, respectively. The rate of formation of ischial fractures is 18.9% (Bouabdallah et al, 2020). Sadan et al, (2016) revealed that the incidence of unilateral ischial fractures is 67.9% in dogs and 64.3% in cats.…”

“…In the present study, we found that the rate of ilium fractures among pelvic fractures was 20.8%. Bouabdallah et al, (2020) reported that the rate of sacroiliac separation among pelvic fractures was 59.5%. Johnson and Hulse (2005) suggested that sacroiliac separations should be surgically treated.…”

“…Most veterinary orthopedic surgeons recommend that most pelvic fractures in cats and dogs need surgery. However, surgical interventions may be disrupted due to financial constraints, chronic fractures, or veterinarians not having enough experience in orthopedics (Bouabdallah et al, 2020). In addition to these, radiographic evaluations in pelvic fractures are of great importance in planning the treatments to be applied.…”