Justin M. Goggin

USE OF ULTRASOUND TO LOCATE RETAINED TESTES IN DOGS AND CATS

Ultrasound was used to locate undescended testes in 30 dogs and 4 cats where the final testicular location was determined surgically. Time between ultrasound and surgery ranged between 0 and 17 days. Forty-three testes (63.2%) were retained and 42/43 (97.7%) were detected ultrasonographically. Retained testes were located in the abdomen (n = 28) and inguinal region (n = 14). One retained testis could not be identified with use of ultrasound. Locations of retained testes ranged from the caudal pole of the kidney to the inguinal region. Descriptions of testicular echogenicity and size were not available for all testes. A 100% positive predictive value was found for all testes with use of ultrasound in both abdominal and inguinal regions. The sensitivity of ultrasound was 96.6% for abdominal and 100% for inguinal testes. Ultrasound is a sensitive test for location of retained testes, and supports the opinion that preoperative ultrasound can help facilitate location of retained testes prior to surgical exploration or laparoscopy.

COMPUTED TOMOGRAPHIC FINDINGS IN 24 DOGS WITH LIPOSARCOMA

Computed tomography (CT) continues to become more widely available for assessment of tumors in dogs, yet there are no studies describing the CT appearance of canine liposarcomas. In this retrospective, multicenter study, CT images of dogs with histologically confirmed liposarcomas were reviewed for size, location, attenuation, contrast enhancement, border definition, internal homogeneity, local infiltration, and mineralization. A total of 24 dogs with 26 liposarcomas were sampled. Mean attenuation was +15.2 (SD = 22.3) Hounsfield units (HU) with a range of -36 to +47.5 HU based on representative regions of interest. Twenty tumors (77%) contained focal areas of fat attenuation. All masses enhanced with contrast medium administration, which is distinct from what has been reported previously in infiltrative lipomas. Other CT features associated with canine liposarcomas included heterogeneous internal attenuation (81%) and lack of a clearly defined capsule (38%) suggesting infiltration of local structures. Six tumors (23%) had foci of mineralization. Findings from the current study indicated that liposarcoma should be considered as a differential diagnosis for mixed-attenuation, contrast-enhancing masses in dogs that contain at least one focus of fat attenuation on precontrast images; however, presence of foci of fat attenuation was not a necessary finding for the diagnosis of canine liposarcoma.