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Persistent fontanelles in Chihuahuas. Part I. Distribution and clinical relevance

BACKGROUND: The Chihuahua dog breed is known for frequent occurrence of a bregmatic fontanelle on the dorsal skull. A common conception is that this skull defect is a clinically irrelevant finding. No studies, however, describe its prevalence or whether it is accompanied by other persistent fontanel...

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Autores principales: Kiviranta, Anna‐Mariam, Rusbridge, Clare, Lappalainen, Anu K., Junnila, Jouni J. T., Jokinen, Tarja S.
Formato: Online Artículo Texto
Lenguaje:English
Publicado: John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 2021
Materias:
Acceso en línea:https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC8295709/
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/34028887
http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/jvim.16151
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author Kiviranta, Anna‐Mariam
Rusbridge, Clare
Lappalainen, Anu K.
Junnila, Jouni J. T.
Jokinen, Tarja S.
author_facet Kiviranta, Anna‐Mariam
Rusbridge, Clare
Lappalainen, Anu K.
Junnila, Jouni J. T.
Jokinen, Tarja S.
author_sort Kiviranta, Anna‐Mariam
collection PubMed
description BACKGROUND: The Chihuahua dog breed is known for frequent occurrence of a bregmatic fontanelle on the dorsal skull. A common conception is that this skull defect is a clinically irrelevant finding. No studies, however, describe its prevalence or whether it is accompanied by other persistent fontanelles (PFs). Although Chihuahuas are predisposed to Chiari‐like malformation (CM) and syringomyelia (SM), it is unknown whether PFs occur more commonly in dogs with clinical signs that are caused by CM or SM. HYPOTHESIS/OBJECTIVES: To describe the number and location of PFs at cranial sutures (CSs) and to compare the occurrence of these PFs in dogs with and without CM/SM‐related clinical signs. We hypothesized that PFs also occur commonly at lateral and caudal cranial surfaces, affect a higher number of CSs, and are larger in dogs with CM/SM‐related clinical signs. ANIMALS: Fifty client‐owned Chihuahuas with or without CM/SM‐related clinical signs. RESULTS: Of the 50 dogs evaluated, 46 (92%) had either 1 or several PFs. The mean ± SD number of PFs was 2.8 ± 3.0 (range, 0‐13). A total of 138 PFs occupied 118 CSs with 57 (48%) located dorsally, 44 (37%) caudally, and 17 (14%) laterally. The number of CSs affected by PFs was significantly higher (P ≤ .001) and total PF area was significantly larger (P = .003) in dogs with CM/SM‐related clinical signs. CONCLUSIONS AND CLINICAL IMPORTANCE: Persistent fontanelles are very common in this group of Chihuahuas and appear at dorsal, lateral, and caudal cranial surfaces. They are more numerous and larger in Chihuahuas with CM/SM‐related clinical signs.
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spelling pubmed-82957092021-07-27 Persistent fontanelles in Chihuahuas. Part I. Distribution and clinical relevance Kiviranta, Anna‐Mariam Rusbridge, Clare Lappalainen, Anu K. Junnila, Jouni J. T. Jokinen, Tarja S. J Vet Intern Med SMALL ANIMAL BACKGROUND: The Chihuahua dog breed is known for frequent occurrence of a bregmatic fontanelle on the dorsal skull. A common conception is that this skull defect is a clinically irrelevant finding. No studies, however, describe its prevalence or whether it is accompanied by other persistent fontanelles (PFs). Although Chihuahuas are predisposed to Chiari‐like malformation (CM) and syringomyelia (SM), it is unknown whether PFs occur more commonly in dogs with clinical signs that are caused by CM or SM. HYPOTHESIS/OBJECTIVES: To describe the number and location of PFs at cranial sutures (CSs) and to compare the occurrence of these PFs in dogs with and without CM/SM‐related clinical signs. We hypothesized that PFs also occur commonly at lateral and caudal cranial surfaces, affect a higher number of CSs, and are larger in dogs with CM/SM‐related clinical signs. ANIMALS: Fifty client‐owned Chihuahuas with or without CM/SM‐related clinical signs. RESULTS: Of the 50 dogs evaluated, 46 (92%) had either 1 or several PFs. The mean ± SD number of PFs was 2.8 ± 3.0 (range, 0‐13). A total of 138 PFs occupied 118 CSs with 57 (48%) located dorsally, 44 (37%) caudally, and 17 (14%) laterally. The number of CSs affected by PFs was significantly higher (P ≤ .001) and total PF area was significantly larger (P = .003) in dogs with CM/SM‐related clinical signs. CONCLUSIONS AND CLINICAL IMPORTANCE: Persistent fontanelles are very common in this group of Chihuahuas and appear at dorsal, lateral, and caudal cranial surfaces. They are more numerous and larger in Chihuahuas with CM/SM‐related clinical signs. John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 2021-05-24 2021 /pmc/articles/PMC8295709/ /pubmed/34028887 http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/jvim.16151 Text en © 2021 The Authors. Journal of Veterinary Internal Medicine published by Wiley Periodicals LLC on behalf of American College of Veterinary Internal Medicine. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/This is an open access article under the terms of the http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/ (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/) License, which permits use, distribution and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited and is not used for commercial purposes.
spellingShingle SMALL ANIMAL
Kiviranta, Anna‐Mariam
Rusbridge, Clare
Lappalainen, Anu K.
Junnila, Jouni J. T.
Jokinen, Tarja S.
Persistent fontanelles in Chihuahuas. Part I. Distribution and clinical relevance
title Persistent fontanelles in Chihuahuas. Part I. Distribution and clinical relevance
title_full Persistent fontanelles in Chihuahuas. Part I. Distribution and clinical relevance
title_fullStr Persistent fontanelles in Chihuahuas. Part I. Distribution and clinical relevance
title_full_unstemmed Persistent fontanelles in Chihuahuas. Part I. Distribution and clinical relevance
title_short Persistent fontanelles in Chihuahuas. Part I. Distribution and clinical relevance
title_sort persistent fontanelles in chihuahuas. part i. distribution and clinical relevance
topic SMALL ANIMAL
url https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC8295709/
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/34028887
http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/jvim.16151
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