The aim of this study was to evaluate the medical records of dogs with cervical intervertebral disk disease (IDD), submitted to surgical treatment at the Hospital Veterinário Universitário of Universidade Federal de Santa Maria (HVU-UFSM), between January 2003 and October 2008. The animal data included breed, sex, age, neurological signs and their durations, response to surgical treatment, complications, time for functional recovery after surgery, and recurrence. All dogs showed cervical hyperaesthesia confirmed by the neck movement test. Regarding the degree of neurological dysfunction, the following were verified: degree I (eight dogs, 28.5%), degree II (three dogs, 10.7%), degree III (five dogs, 17.8%), and degree V (twelve dogs, 42.8%). In relation to the duration of neurological signs prior to surgery, seven dogs (25%) showed neurological deficits for up to 15 days, fourteen dogs (50%) for 15 to 30 days and the other seven dogs (25%) showed signs of neurological deficiencies for more than 30 days. All dogs (n=21) showed satisfactory recovery and no recurrence. It can be concluded that most affected dogs are middle aged, males and condrodystrophic and noncondrodystrophic breeds including large-breed dogs and the main neurological sign is cervical hyperaesthesia. The surgical treatment promotes satisfactory functional recovery and no recurrence, the main complications intraoperative are venous plexus hemorrhage, bradycardia and hypotension and the duration of clinical signs prior to surgery do not interfere with the recovery time of the dogs.
Cervical hyperaesthesia; neurology; ventral slot; dog
