Week 1-rads (abdominal and thoracic)

Pylorus is on the right side of the abdomen, so the dog should be placed in left lateral view

What side of the dog abdomen can the pylorus be found and what lateral position should the dog patient be placed?

The fundus is located on the left side of the abdomen, so the patient should be placed in right lateral view.

What side of the abdomen is the fundus and what position should the dog patient be placed to accurately view this structure?

Pancreas, adrenals, lymph nodes, ureters, and ovaries/uterus

What organs of the abdominal cavity are not normally seen on a radiograph?

Number, size, shape, position, and opacity

What are the Roentgen signs in radiology?

Release tensions in legs

How can one get rid of skin folds on a patient during abdominal radiographs?

Spondylosis deformans

What is this structure?

Diaphragmatic hernia

What is occurring in this patient?

Right Inguinal hernia

What is occurring in this patient?

Serosal definition

What term refers to the ability to discern abdominal organs due to contrast with surrounding peritoneal fat?

If the patient is emaciated (loss of fat) or neonate (Brown fat)

Why would there be reduced/lost serosal detail in an x-ray in relation to body condition?

Free fluid, peritonitis (steatitis), carcinomas, mass effect, post op changes

What are some pathological reasons as to why an abdominal radiograph would have reduced serosal detail?

Up to 6 months

How long will neonates and juveniles have brown fat?

Peritoneal effusion

What is occurring in this patients abdomen?

Steatitis

What condition is common in cats due to vit E deficiency, chronic pancreatitis, or high fish diet and is defined as inflammation of fat tissue?

FIP

What disease in cats can often lead to peritoneal effusion?

Pneumoperitoneum

What term refers to increased contrast of serosal definition in abdominal radiographs?

Secondary to surgery, penetrating trauma, rupture of hollow viscera, and necrotic neoplasia/abscesses

What are some causes to pneumoperitoneum?

Highlighted serosal surfaces, geometric-shaped gas opacities

On a radiograph of a patient with pneumoperitoneum, what are some common findings one can see?

Horizontal beam lateral and VD

What x-ray position makes viewing pneumoperitoneum easier?

Pneumoperitoneum

What is occurring in this patient?

Dystrophic mineralization/tissue death, metabolic disorders (Cushing), inflammation, neoplasia, mesenteric cyst/Bates body

What are some causes of intrabdominal mineralization?

Mesenteric cysts/Bates body

What are these incidental findings often observed in cats?

The retroperitoneum

What is an extraperitoneal space situated ventral to the vertebrae and paraspinal muscles that extends along the length of the entire abdomen from the diaphragm to the anus?

Kidneys, ureters, adrenals, aorta, caudal vena cava, celiac and cranial mesenteric arteries, renal and deep circumflex vessels

What structures are found within the retroperitoneal space?

Retroperitoneal effusion

What is occurring in this patient?

Bone tumor at L4

What is happening at this location that is causing the observed retroperitoneal effusion?

Pneumoretroperitoneum

What is occurring in this patient that is causing the enhanced vision of the kidneys?

Falciform fat

In obese cats, what can displace the liver?

Rounding or blunting of the caudoventral liver margin, extension beyond the costal arch, and caudal displacement of the gastric axis

On a lateral view of a patient with generalized hepatomegaly, what are some common findings?

Perpendicular to spine

In a normal view of the stomach and the liver in a lateral view of the abdomen, how should the gastric axis be situated?

Generalized hepatomegaly

What is occurring in this patient?

Right sided heart failure

What is a cardiovascular cause to hepatomegaly?

Hyperadrenocorticism, hypothyroidism, and diabetes mellitus

What are some endocrine related causes to hepatomegaly?

Possible micro hepatica

What can be said if the gastric axis is displaced cranially?

Normal variant, porto-systemic shunt, microvascular dysplasia, and cirrhosis (older patients)

What are some causes to micro hepatica?

Gallbladder mineralization

What is a common finding amongst cats in their cranial ventral aspect of the liver?

Right cranial

Where is the pancreas found in the abdomen?

Pancreatitis

What is occurring in this patient in the highlighted area?

Tail of spleen on the right side

What specific part of this organ is circled and what side of the body is it found in canines?

No (if seen usually splenomegaly)

Is the spleen usually seen in cat abdominal radiographs?

Often associated with GDV in large breed dogs due to stricture

Splenomegaly is often associated with what? and because of why?

C-shaped soft tissue opacity in central abdomen

The spleen of a dog with splenomegaly will often take what shape?

Splenomegaly

What is occurring in this patient?

Head of spleen- rightward

small int and desc colon- caudally

In the case of splenomegaly, where will the head of the spleen, small intestine and descending colon be displaced to?

Splenic mass

What is occurring in this patient?

Clockwise

Which way is the torsion often oriented in GDV?

dorsal and cranial

Which way does the pylorus move in GDV?

Ventral and right

Where does the fundus and greater curvature of the stomach shift in GDV?

Pylorus

In a right lateral view of a patient with GDV, which compartment of the stomach will fill with air?

Gastric dilation without volvulus

What is this patient experiencing?

GDV

What is the patient experiencing in this x-ray?

Pyloric outflow obstruction

What is a common cause to chronic vomiting in dogs?

Pylorospasm

What is a functional cause to pyloric outflow obstruction?

Mass, fibrosis, inflammation, hypertrophic pyloric stenosis, chronic hypertrophic pyloric gastropathy

What are mechanical causes to pyloric outflow obstruction?

Gastric dilation and “gravel”signs

What are some radiographic findings for pyloric outflow obstruction?

Pyloric outflow obstruction

What is occurring in this patient that is evident in these radiographs?

Contrast or U/S

What can one do when suspecting a FB, but can’t see it on radiographs?

Gastric wall thickening, thickening or inc number of rural folds, and may see mineralization with uremic gastritis

What are some radiographic findings that suggest gastritis?

Gastritis

What is evident in the stomach of this dog?

Gastric thickening most likely due to neoplasia

What is evident in these x-rays?

PPDH (peritonealpericardial diaphragmatic hernia)

What is evident in this radiograph?

Incidental in cats and serious in dogs

In which species can PPDH be a incidental finding and in which species is it more serious?

Hernia and rupture of the diaphragm

What is occurring in this patient that is evident in these radiographs?

Perianal hernia

X-rays were taken of a 13 year old mix breed dog. Right off the bat shit looks fu*kd. Most of the small intestines are coming out the but hole?? and oh what is that?!?! the bladder. Now you tell me what is most likely occurring in this patient?

Diarrhea

What is the most common clinical sign of intestinal ds without ileus/enteritis?

Corrugation and bunching of small int, possible gravel signs

What is a radiographic finding of the intestines that infers severe enteritis?

Bacterial overgrowth will produce endotoxins which will generate gas

What is a toxic cause to ileus?

Hypokalemia

What metabolic imbalance can cause ileus?

Dysautonomia causes dynamic ileus

What is a neurological functional cause to ileus?

Generalized ileus

What is occurring in this patient?

Vomiting and severe fluid and electrolyte loss

What clinical signs are often associated with complete proximal small intestinal obstruction?

anorexia, and intermittent vomiting

What clinical signs are associated with a distal small intestinal obstruction?

Early stages the intestinal dilation will be gaseous and eventually will fill with fluid

How will the radiographic findings change in mechanical ileus over time?

Stacking SI loops giving a hairpin appearance, loss of serosal definition, and gravel sign

What three radiographic findings suggest mechanical ileus is occurring in a patient?

Cranially- dilation of SI in more cranial areas. Normal dilation in SI caudal to FB

Caudally- Dilation of entire SI

What dilation patterns can be seen in SI cranial foreign body and a caudal FB?

Most likely a FB causing two populations bowel. Some SI is gaseous, while the more ventral SI is normal

What can this radiograph suggest is occurring in this patient?

Linear foreign body

What important surgical condition is most common in cats and causes intestinal ds without ileus?

In the pylorus

Where will a linear foreign body usually lodge itself in canine patients?

Bunched and plicated

How will the SI appear in a feline patient with a linear foreign body?

Teardrop, crescent shape, triangle or irregular

What shape of gas bubbles are common in patients with intestinal ds without ileus (linear foreign body)?

Linear foreign body

What is occurring in this radiograph?

Mesenteric torsion

What is occurring in this patient?

Intussusception

What term refers to telescoping or inversion of the bowl that can cause mechanical obstruction?

Peristalsis pathology, intestinal parasites, focal neoplastic lesions, linear foreign bodies and systemic disease

What are common primary or secondary conditions that can cause intussusception?

Intussusception

What is common in the ileocolic junction and is thought to be secondary to hook worm parasitism?

Constipation

Difficult, incomplete or infrequent evacuation of dry hardened feces (often in cats) is called what?

Obstipation

The inability to evacuate a mass of hard dry feces is termed what?

Megacolon

Hypomobility and dilation of the colon which results in constipation and obstipation is termed what?

cats

Which species experiences idiopathic megacolon?

Megacolon

Chronic renal disease and persistent subclinical dehydration can cause what in the colon?

Diameter of the colon to L5 vertebrae body (1.28-1.48 constipation, greater than 1.48 is mega)

How can one differentiate constipation from megacolon using radiographs?

Ileus of the colon

What is occurring in this patient?

Ileocolic junction

Where is the most common place of intussception in the colon?

Intussusception and cecal inversion

What is occurring in this patient?

Lymphosarcome, hydronephrosis, perinephric pseudocyst, and acute nephritis

What are some causes to renomegaly with smooth contour?

Bilateral splenomegaly due to lymphoma

What is occurring in this patient?

Left renomegaly due to hydronephrosis

What is occurring in this patient?

Neoplasia, focal renal cyst, polycystic kidney dz, FIP, abscess/hematoma, renal cyst adenoma

What can cause renomegaly with irregular contour ?

Right renomegaly

What is occurring in this patient?

Congenital renal disease, end-stage renal disease

What can cause a decrease in size of kidneys?