Objective To report outcomes after the correction of ectopic ureter (EU) by open surgery or cystoscopic‐guided laser ablation (CLA) in female dogs. Study design Retrospective study from 2011 to 2018. Animals Twenty‐five female dogs. Methods Data collected included signalment, clinicopathologic data, procedural data, complications, and short‐term and long‐term outcomes. Complications were graded as minor or major if a surgical revision was required. Continence status was scored subjectively (1 = completely incontinent to 10 = fully continent). Results Fifteen dogs had bilateral EU and 24 had intramural EU (iEU). Open surgical correction included 13 neoureterostomies, 2 neocystoureterostomies, and a combination of these in 2 dogs. Eight dogs underwent CLA. Eighteen dogs experienced minor complications (72%), and 2 experienced major complications (8%). One‐month postoperative continence was achieved in 20/25 (80%) dogs (median score of 10). Incontinence recurred at a median time of 24.9 months in 5 dogs but responded to medical treatment. Overall, dogs remained continent for 66 months (median) and 22/25 (88%) dogs achieved continence with adjunction of medical/surgical treatment in incontinent ones. Fewer minor complications and postoperative recurrences of incontinence were documented after CLA than neoureterostomy (P < .01 and P < .05). Conclusion Ectopic ureter correction by open surgery or CLA resulted in a subjectively good prognosis, most dogs reaching continence within a month of surgery, although incontinence occasionally recurred in the long term. CLA was associated with fewer complications and incontinence recurrences than neoureterostomy. Clinical significance Cystoscopic‐guided laser ablation should be preferred to correct iEU to prevent short‐term complications and the recurrence of incontinence. Further studies should investigate the cause of postoperative recurrence of urinary incontinence.

Background -The anterior cruciate ligament rupture is a common injury which mainly affects young and active population. Faced to this problem, the development of synthetic structures for ligament reconstruction is increasing. The most recent researches focused on the development of biodegradable structures that could be functionalized to enhance host integration. This work describes the elaboration of different poly(ε-caprolactone) prototypes for the rat anterior cruciate ligament replacement in order to found the best design for further in vivo assays.Methods -According to the literature, it was decided to elaborate two different poly(ε-caprolactone)prototypes: a braided one and a free-fibers one. A chemical grafting of a bioactive polymerpoly(sodium styrene sulfonate) -was performed on both prototypes and mechanical and biological testing were assessed. Based on these results, one rat was implanted with the best prototype.Results -The mechanical and biological results demonstrated that the best prototype to implant was the poly(sodium styrene sulfonate)-grafted braided prototype. After one-month implantation, no inflammation was observable around the scar. The rat demonstrated good flexion and extension of the lower limb without any anterior drawer. The prototype was highly anchored to the bone. ESEM images of the explanted prototype showed the presence of cells and tissue ingrowth along and around the fibers. Conclusion -This work demonstrates the feasibility to implant a bioactive and biodegradablesynthetic ligament in the rat model without any inflammation and with a good tissue anchoring at a short-term time. This will lead to an extensive in vivo assay.

No abstract

Background Anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) repair techniques are new emerging strategies prevailing, in selected cases, over standard reconstruction of the ACL with excision of its remnants. Mid-substance ACL tears represent a challenge for ACL repair techniques, and remnants-preserving ACL reconstruction (rp-ACLR) using an autograft remains the recommended treatment in this situation. However, morbidity associated with the autograft harvesting prompts the need for alternative surgical strategies based on the use of synthetic scaffolds. Relevant small animal models of mid-substance tears with ACL remnants preservation and reconstruction are necessary to establish the preliminary proof of concept of these new strategies. Methods A rat model of rp-ACLR using a tendinous autograft after complete mid-substance ACL transection was established. Twelve weeks following surgery, clinical outcomes and knee joints were assessed through visual gait analysis, Lachman tests, thigh perimeter measurements, magnetic resonance imaging, micro-computed tomography, and histology, to evaluate the morbidity of the procedure, accuracy of bone tunnel positioning, ACL remnants fate, osteoarthritis, and autograft bony integration. Results were compared with those obtained with isolated ACL transection without reconstruction and to right non-operated knees. Results and discussion Most operated animals were weight-bearing the day following surgery, and no adverse inflammatory reaction has been observed for the whole duration of the study. Autograft fixation with cortical screws provided effective graft anchorage until sacrifice. Healing of the transected ACL was not observed in the animals in which no graft reconstruction was performed. rp-ACLR was associated with a reduced degeneration of the ACL remnants (p = 0.004) and cartilages (p = 0.0437). Joint effusion and synovitis were significantly lower in the reconstructed group compared to the transected ACL group (p = 0.004). Most of the bone tunnel apertures were anatomically positioned in the coronal and/or sagittal plane. The most deviated bone tunnel apertures were the tibial ones, located in median less than 1 mm posteriorly to anatomical ACL footprint center. Conclusion This study presents a cost-effective, new relevant and objective rat model associated with low morbidity for the preliminary study of bio-implantable materials designed for remnants-preserving ACL surgery after mid-substance ACL tear.

Case summary A 4-month-old female domestic shorthair kitten was presented for a congenital cleft palate causing nasal discharge and sneezing episodes. CT revealed a palatal bone defect involving 20% of the palatal area. Surgical correction of both the hard and soft palate defects was performed using the overlapping and medially positioned flap techniques, respectively. Complete healing of the wound and full resolution of the clinical signs occurred within a 1-month period. At 2 months postoperatively, two punctiform oronasal fistulae were observed rostrally without associated clinical signs. Control CT, performed 6 months postoperatively, revealed a 50% enlargement of the palatal bone defect. At 12 months postoperatively, the cat was still in good general condition without any clinical signs. Relevance and novel information To the best of our knowledge, this is the first report to describe the treatment of a congenital cleft palate in a kitten using the overlapping flap technique with a successful medium-term clinical outcome, despite the formation of two oronasal fistulae. This suggests that, as in dogs, full restoration of oronasal compartmentation is not mandatory to achieve functional outcome. The increase of the palatal bone defect over time may play a role in late oronasal fistulae formation and should be considered for surgical planning.

No abstract

No abstract

No abstract