Radiographic vertebral canal and vertebral body ratios in Doberman Pinschers with and without clinical signs of caudal cervical spondylomyelopathy.

OBJECTIVE

To determine radiographic vertebral ratio values representing vertebral canal stenosis in Doberman Pinschers with and without clinical signs of caudal cervical spondylomyelopathy (CCSM).

ANIMALS: Doberman Pinschers with (n = 81) and without (39) signs of CCSM.

PROCEDURES: All dogs underwent lateral survey radiography of the cervical vertebral column. Five specific measurements were made at C3 through C7, and from those data, 3 ratios were calculated and analyzed for use in diagnosis of CSSM: canal height-to-vertebral body height ratio (CBHR), canal height-to-vertebral body length ratio (CBLR), and caudal vertebral canal height-to-cranial vertebral canal height ratio (CCHR). The CBHR and CBLR were considered indicators of vertebral canal stenosis, and CCHR described vertebral canal shape.

RESULTS

Compared with Doberman Pinschers without CCSM, mean CBHR and CBLR values were significantly smaller for Doberman Pinschers with CCSM; for CBHR, this difference was evident at each assessed vertebra. The CCHR value for C7 was significantly larger in dogs with CCSM. Receiver operating characteristic statistics did not identify a threshold point that had combined high sensitivity and specificity sufficient to differentiate between Doberman Pinschers with and without CCSM.

CONCLUSIONS AND CLINICAL RELEVANCE: Doberman Pinschers with CCSM had vertebral canal stenosis combined with a funnel-shaped vertebral canal at C7 significantly more often than did Doberman Pinschers without CCSM. Despite these significant differences, no reliable threshold ratio values were identified to differentiate groups of dogs.