Jump to content

Elbow Dysplasia Surgery Unsuccessful?


Cosmolo
 Share

Recommended Posts

Does anyone have any experience with elbow dysplasia surgery being unsuccessful? Our 12 month old ACD had a double elbow arthroscopy, followed by the required crate rest, physio and hydrotherapy. She is going back to the vet on Friday but the level of lameness currently is the same as the lameness shown before surgery (except for a few weeks of acute lameness after she fragmented cartilage, immediately before the surgery).

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 3 months later...

Does anyone have any experience with elbow dysplasia surgery being unsuccessful? Our 12 month old ACD had a double elbow arthroscopy, followed by the required crate rest, physio and hydrotherapy. She is going back to the vet on Friday but the level of lameness currently is the same as the lameness shown before surgery (except for a few weeks of acute lameness after she fragmented cartilage, immediately before the surgery).

Hi cosmolo, how is you dog doing with recovery. My 6 month old lab is having surgery (arthrotomy)on Monday,I was hoping to hear some positive results. It is either give surgery a try or euthanise him.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Does anyone have any experience with elbow dysplasia surgery being unsuccessful? Our 12 month old ACD had a double elbow arthroscopy, followed by the required crate rest, physio and hydrotherapy. She is going back to the vet on Friday but the level of lameness currently is the same as the lameness shown before surgery (except for a few weeks of acute lameness after she fragmented cartilage, immediately before the surgery).

physio and hydro are not something you do following a prescription. Any half decent physio should have designed an individual program for the individual dog, been incredibly careful in monitoring the lameness throughout and modified any plans, to assist the dog further. Hydro would be exactly the same. One does not move a dog onto a different level of exercises if they are still in pain and not coping with the ones they have. Everyone dog is different, just like every person is different, everyone recovers differently and they all have different needs. Programs need to be designed for the individual dog and modified at each visit to ensure that the dog is still comfortable, and lameness is not returning. Hydro is exactly the same. An individual dogs need for x number of sessions cannot be determined in advance. One can give general advice, but an individual is exactly that. They all respond differently, some need more of one thing and less of another, etc.

If the lameness was not present during the rehabilitation, then I would question what changed when it stopped to cause it to come back again. If it was present during the rehabilitation, I would question what the physio was doing.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Elbows are tricky and irritable and difficult to treat at the best of times.

Best of luck Herbiegirl with your boy. I have worked with many very uncomfortable dogs who have had a new lease on life after surgery and I hope you have an amazing outcome.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Brookestar- you have misinterpreted what i meant when i said required- we did exactly what the qualified physio and the vets told us to do for our particular dog. The lameness was present but improving and then reached a point where it failed to improve any further.

Morgan is now on daily medication, we sought a second specialist opinion which gave us an additional surgical option. We elected not to put her though this for a variety of reasons, mostly that the surgery cannot address the degenerative arthritis already present, both elbows would have to be done separately and the recovery time would be lengthy for each. So she is now on Loxicom indefinitely.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.

Sign In Now
 Share

×
×
  • Create New...