Compassionate Care for Pets With Orthopedic Needs
Our highly trained veterinary staff have offered orthopedic surgeries since our opening in 2003. We offer cruciate repairs, FHO (femoral head ostectomy), fracture repairs and patella repairs. We welcome patients from clinics without orthopedic surgeons for a consultation with one of our surgeons to see how we can help them with their orthopedic needs.
Cruciate Repair
The cranial cruciate ligament works to stabilize the knee much the same as the anterior cruciate ligament in humans. Damage/tears to this ligament are the most common orthopedic condition seen in canine (dog) patients.
While there are several surgical options, we typically use the extracapsular lateral suture stabilization technique. This procedure uses a very strong suture outside of the joint to re-establish the stability of the “knee”. The success of this procedure will increase with the patient being at their ideal weight prior to surgery. Following surgery, strict cage restriction/leash walks for the first 8 weeks are required.
FHO
A femoral head ostectomy is a hip surgery where the head and neck of the femur are permanently removed to provide relief from a painful hip joint. This procedure will provide better mobility and comfort than the diseased joint when there are limited alternatives and pain medication alone can not maintain comfort for your pet.
Patella Repairs
Patella luxation, or knee cap dislocation, is a common condition that causes hind end lameness. The quadriceps tendon attaches the femur to the tibia through the patellar ligament and can often become displaced as the quadriceps muscle is flexed, particularly in small breed dogs. There are multiple degrees of severity with this condition. When the displacement becomes chronic and/or painful, surgery is the best option for comfort and stability. Several techniques are used and one of the most common is to deepen the groove in the femur for the knee cap and ligament to rest in and slide in so it doesn’t continue to displace to the side. The technique used allows for preservation of the smooth cartilage joint surface while deepening the groove. Sometimes the luxation is severe enough that additional modifications are needed including moving the attachment of the patellar ligament more toward midline (front) of the knee called a tibial tuberosity transposition.
Fracture Repairs
Fractures for dogs and cats will often require surgical stabilization to heal appropriately. Depending on the severity of the fracture, our doctors offer both internal and external fixation.
Chester
Gus
