Clinical Outcomes and Stifle Osteoarthritis Assessment of Nine Cats Before and After Tibial Plateau Levelling Osteotomy

Abstract

This study aimed to evaluate the clinical and radio graphical outcome of cats following TPLO surgery for cranial cruciate ligament deficiency. Each cat underwent orthopedic assessment, pre-operative radio graphical evaluation, surgical procedure, postoperative management and clinical re-examination 1, 2, and 12 months following surgery. Age, body weights, TPAs, meniscal tears, implants and osteoarthritis progression were recorded. Postoperative OA score was compared with that obtained 1 year after surgery using a paired t-test with commercially available software. Radio graphical evaluation performed 1 year after surgery showed no significant OA progression (P-value > 0.1). Minor complications occurred in one case (#7) in which a mild to moderate seroma was observed ten days after surgery. No major complications were recorded. Although TPLO surgery in cats remains controversial, this study suggests that it was a suitable option for surgical treatment of feline cranial cruciate ligament rupture, but considering the ex vivo outcomes recently published, further in vivo evaluation is strongly recommended.

Combination of TPLO, medial and lateral augmentation techniques for the treatment of traumatic stifle luxation in a cat

“… 16 Recent studies suggest that TPLO can be a viable option for the treatment of feline CrCL rupture. 11 , 12 …”

“…16 Recent studies suggest that TPLO can be a viable option for the treatment of feline CrCL rupture. 11,12 However, TPLO primarily addresses cranial draw instability but does not effectively address internal rotation. 28 In this particular case, both the CrCL and CaCL were disrupted, resulting in persistent internal and external rotation after TPLO.…”

“… 8 – 10 Neutralisation of the cranial tibial thrust with a tibial plateau levelling osteotomy (TPLO) in cats remains controversial, achieving different results between ex vivo and in vivo studies. 11 – 13 Typically, its stabilisation involves a lateral fabellotibial suture, while a fibula-patellar suture treats caudal cruciate ligament (CaCL) rupture. 1 , 6 Joint immobilisation methods range from external coaptation to rigid transarticular external fixation, though controversy exists due to associated complications.…”

Ex vivo biomechanical evaluation and comparison of lateral femoro-fabella ligament suture and lateral suture with bone anchor for cranial cruciate ligament repair in cats

“…[1][2][3]5,7 Osteotomy techniques produce favorable outcomes in dogs compared to extracapsular procedures, and there are a small number of case series in cats documenting promising results with tibial osteotomy techniques. [8][9][10][11][12][13] The biomechanical properties of these 2 techniques used for stifle joint stabilization, with both osteotomies and extracapsular fixation, have been widely evaluated in dogs. [14][15][16][17][18][19][20][21] Nevertheless, there are limited reports available that assess the biomechanical behavior of extracapsular techniques for stifle stabilization in cats.…”