What is JPS?
Juvenile Pubic Symphysiodesis (JPS) – this is a new preventatitive procedure for very young dogs (less than 16 weeks of age) that are at risk of developing hip dysplasia. The pubic symphysis is fused causing the hip joints to rotate outward as the dog grows. Joint rotation reduces hip laxity and improves joint conformation. We do this procedure at the same time as desexing and we have been seeing promising results. The best part about this procedure is that it a very safe procedure and minimal pain and the young dogs recover very quickly after surgery.

Key Points

• Dogs should be preferably less than 4 months of age to benefit from the surgery
• Your pet can be screened to at 4 months of age using PennHip x-rays to determine if he/she is likely going to develop hip dysplasia.
• The JPS surgery has minimal morbidity and is usually done on an outpatient basis.
• There is about a 90% chance that your pet will benefit from having the procedure done

Identification of candidates for the JPS surgery

• Dogs should be preferably 4 months of age and no older than 5 months of age for this surgery to benefit from the surgery.
• PennHIP radiographs should be made to assess the dog for loose hips.
• We recommend that all breed susceptible dogs such as Labradors, Rottweilers, German Shepherds, Golden retrievers and other breeds should be tested at 4 months of age using the PennHIP technique

JPS surgery

• Your pet will be put under general anesthesia.
• A small incision is made between the hind limbs to expose the pubic bone of the pelvis.
• The growth plate of the pubis is cauterized to destroy the growing cells of this part of the pelvis.
• Your pet likely will go home on the same day that the surgery is performed.

How the JPS surgery works

• The pelvis when viewed from a dog's rear end is circular.
• The pink small area in the illustration is the growth center (growth plate) of the pubic bone of the pelvis.
• When the growth from this growth center (pubis) is stopped, yet the remaining parts of the pelvis grow, the sockets of the hips rotate over the ball of the hip (femoral head).
• Take note of the lack of coverage (shading) of the ball of the femur prior to surgery (below left) versus after the dog has finished growing (below right.
• The result is a stable hip that has much less chance of developing significant arthritis.

Success of the JPS procedure

• If the procedure is done at 4 months of age there is a much greater chance that it will prevent significant development of arthritis of the hips.
• Research has shown that this procedure is about 95% successful.

Potential complications

• Failure of the pubic growth center to be successfully ablated by the cauterization surgery, thus the pelvis grows as it would naturally and the hip dysplasia progresses
• Infection is uncommon
• Seroma or fluid accumulation at the surgery site may present as a soft swelling at the surgery site; this fluid build up will resolve in a couple of weeks usually with no treatment.
• Damage to the urethra or tube where urine passes to the outside; this complication is rare in the hands of a surgeon aware of the pertinent anatomy.
• Mild narrowing of the pelvic canal will occur follow JPS surgery; this will cause no problems, other than with birthing pups; these dogs should be spayed as hip dysplasia is an inheritable disease