Computed Tomographic Assessment of Body Fat in Dach-shunds: A Pilot Study

Jeffrey F. Comstock, Jennifer L. Wardlaw, Erin L. Brinkman-Ferguson, Dennis E. Rowe

.
Department of Clinical Sciences, College of Veterinary Medicine, Mississippi State University, Mississippi, USA.

DOI: 10.4236/ojvm.2013.31001                

Abstract

Obesity has not been linked to causing intervertebral disc degeneration, but has been shown to influence time to ambulation, a strong long-term prognostic indicator in dogs with intervertebral disc disease. However, monitoring obesity to date is imprecise and subjective in the clinical setting. Having an objective formula based on morphometric measurements would potentially be more precise to track our patients’ weights. Dogs have been shown to gain weight along their lumbar spine more rapidly than other areas. Varying body conformations make extrapolation from nonchondrodystrophic dogs to Dachshunds difficult. This study aimed to establish the region of fat accumulation along the thoracolumbar spine in Dachshunds. Retrospective computed tomographic (CT) analysis was performed on healthy Dachshunds that presented for intervertebral disc disease (IVDD). Fat area measured at L3 and L5 using attenuation ranges ﹣135/﹣105 Hounsfield units (HU) was the most dependent on body weight (p = 0.05). There appeared to be no difference between subcutaneous, visceral or total percent body fat with weight agreement. T13, L3 and L5 all had linear relationships with patient weight and will likely be helpful for body mass index (BMI) formula creation (p < 0.01). This study indicates that any consistent location between L3 and L5 will give an accurate representation of the abdominal circumference and most obese area of the Dachshund with the umbilicus used as a landmark.

Keywords

Computed Tomography; Body Fat; Dachshund

Conflicts of Interest

The authors declare no conflicts of interest.

References

[1]	K. J. Wolfsheimer, “Obesity,” In: S. J. Ettinger and E. C. Feldman, Eds., Textbook of Veterinary Internal Medicine: Diseases of the Dog and Cat, 5th Edition, WB Saunders, Philadelphia, 2000, pp. 70-72.
[2]	M. S. Hand, P. J. Armstrong and T. A. Allen, “Obesity: Occurrence, Treatment, and Prevention,” Veterinary Clinics of North America Small Animal Practice, Vol. 19, No. 3, 1989, pp. 447-474.
[3]	E. M. Lund, P. J. Armstrong, C. A. Kirk and J. S. Klauser, “Prevalence and Risk Factors for Obesity in Adult Dogs from Private US Veterinary Practices,” International Journal of Applied Research in Veterinary Medicine, Vol. 4, No. 2, 2006, pp. 177-186.
[4]	J. Gossellin, J. A. Wren and S. J. Sunderland, “Canine Obesity: An Overview,” Journal of Veterinary Pharmacology and Therapeutics, Vol. 30, No. 1, 2007, pp. 1-10. doi:10.1111/j.1365-2885.2007.00863.x
[5]	J. M. Levine, G. J. Levine, S. C. Kerwin, B. F. Hettlich and G. T. Fosgate, “Association between Various Physical Factors and Acute Thoracolumbar Intervertebral Disk Extrusion or Protrusion in Dachshunds,” Journal of the American Veterinary Medical Association, Vol. 229, No. 3, 2006, pp. 370-375. doi:10.2460/javma.229.3.370
[6]	M. U. Ball, J. A. McGuire, S. F. Swaim and B. F. Hoerlein, “Patterns of Occurrence of Disk Disease among Registered Dachshunds,” Journal of the American Veterinary Medical Association, Vol. 180, No. 5, 1982, pp. 519-522.
[7]	W. A. Priester, “Canine Intervertebral Disk Disease Occurrence by Age, Breed, and Sex among 8117 Cases,” Theriogenology, Vol. 6, No. 2-3, 1976, pp. 293-303. doi:10.1016/0093-691X(76)90021-2
[8]	H. Hansen, “A Pathologic-Anatomical Study on Disc Degeneration in the Dog,” Acta Orthopaedica Scandinavica —Supplementum, Vol. 11, No. 1, 1952, pp. 1-117.
[9]	J. P. Bray and H. M. Burbidge, “The Canine Intervertebral Disk. Part Two: Degenerative Changes—Nonchondrodystrophoid versus Chondrodystrophoid Disks,” Journal of the American Animal Hospital Association, Vol. 34, 1998, pp. 135-144.
[10]	T. L. Ruddle, D. A. Allen, E. R. Schertel, M. D. Barnhart, E. R. Wilson, J. A. Lineberger, et al., “Outcome and Prognostic Factors in Non-Ambulatory Hansen Type I Intervertebral Disc Extrusions: 308 Cases,” Veterinary and Comparative Orthopaedics and Traumatology: VCOT, Vol. 19, No. 1, 2006, pp. 29-34.
[11]	N. Olby, J. M. Levine, T. Harris, K. Mu?ana, T. Skeen and N. Sharp, “Long Term Functional Outcome in Dogs with Severe Injuries of the Thoracolumbar Spinal Cord: 87 Cases (1996-2001),” Journal of the American Veterinary Medical Association, Vol. 222, No. 6, 2003, pp. 762-769. doi:10.2460/javma.2003.222.762
[12]	D. I. Mawby, J. W. Bartges, A. d’Avignon, D. P. Laflamme, T. D. Moyers and T. Cottrell, “Comparison of Various Methods for Estimating Body Fat in Dogs,” Journal of the American Animal Hospital Association, Vol. 40, No. 2, 2004, pp. 109-114.
[13]	D. P. Laflamme, “Development and Validation of a Body Condition Score System for Dogs,” Canine Practice, Vol. 22, No. 1, 1997, pp. 10-15.
[14]	C. M. Dorsten and D. M. Cooper, “Use of Body Condition Scoring to Manage Body Weight in Dogs,” Contemporary Topics in Laboratory Animal Science—American Association for Laboratory Animal Science, Vol. 43, No. 3, 2004, pp. 34-37.
[15]	K. Ishioka, M. Okumura, M. Sagawa, F. Nadadomo, K. Kimura and M. Saito, “Computed Tomographic Assessment of Body Fat in Beagles,” Veterinary Radiology and Ultrasound, Vol. 46, No. 1, 2005, pp. 49-53. doi:10.1111/j.1740-8261.2005.00009.x
[16]	V. F. Jensen and A. K. Ersb?ll, “Mechanical Forces Affecting the Occurrence of Intervertebral Disc Calcification in the Dachshund: A Population Study,” Journal of Veterinary Medicine. A, Physiology, Pathology, Clinical medicine, Vol. 47, No. 5, 2000, pp. 283-296.doi:10.1046/j.1439-0442.2000.00296.x