Cruciate Rupture and Repair

We’ve all heard about the footballers “doing their cruciate” or “needing a knee reconstruction” but did you know that your pet also has a cruciate ligament? It is a very common injury in our companion animals.

The cruciate ligament is located in the knee and is actually made up of two parts – the cranial ligament and the caudal ligament which form a cross – thus called the “cruciate” or cross.

Dogs rupture their cruciate ligament mostly when jumping and twisting. Pets that are overweight can put extra strain on their knees and this causes the ligament to degenerate. Arthritis can then set in and accelerate degeneration in the joint, causing the cruciate to fully rupture (snap), which then causes severe lameness. Sometimes they only partially rupture the ligament and may only be lame for a day or two. If something is not done arthritis and inflammation will set in quickly.

Luckily, surgery can be performed to stabilize the joint. If performed early, before arthritis sets in, the success rate of surgery is over 90%.

A new technique has been developed by specialists in the USA which actually realigns the angle on the knee joint so that the dog can walk without having a cruciate ligament. We have now performed a number of these operations on large dogs and have had good success, with a quicker recover and healing of the joint. Dogs that have significant arthritis in their joint really benefit from this new procedure. Advances in new drugs, special diet foods and other supplements can help the pet recovery after surgery, many of our patients go on to live a long and comfortable life.

Luxating Patellas

The “knee cap” or patella can dislocate and cause problems in dogs and cats. This condition is a very common orthopaedic problem in the small breed of dog – commonly the Chihuahua, Pomeranian, Maltese, Shihtzu and Miniature Poodles.

Some dogs show a characteristic “hop” or have a “skipping” gait when walking. This is caused by the knee cap slipping out of its normal place in the knee and then after a few skips it pops back into place and the dog walks normally. We also see the older overweight pet that has damaged the knee when jumping or running, causing an acute lameness to develop.

There are a number of factors that contribute to the problem. The pet is often born with a defect in the development of the groove that normally holds the knee in its normal position. This allows the knee cap to slip out of the joint and eventually wear down the joint and causes degeneration, arthritis and pain.

When the pet is showing the above signs, surgery is the only form of successful treatment. Surgery consists of rebuilding the knee joint – deepening the groove, tightening the internal supporting structures of the knee and sometimes even rotating the bone in the shin to align the ligaments that are attached to the patella.

If you have any questions regarding these procedures then please ring the hospital on 9397 8002 or contact us via email.

Advances in Rehabilitation after orthopaedic surgery

Great advances in the field of physiotherapy for pets have meant our patients can make a quicker and more successful recovery after joint surgery.

There are now swimming pools for pets to use for exercise. Swimming is one of the best therapies after surgery because it allows weight free movement of the legs. There are also now underwater treadmills that can give graded exercise post surgically.