Extradural spinal hydatid cyst causing hindlimb ataxia in a horse.
This case report describes a 13-year-old cob-cross gelding presented for evaluation of recent onset hindlimb ataxia. The gelding had undergone general anaesthesia and tenoscopy of the right hindlimb digital flexor tendon sheath at a nearby clinic three months earlier and had appeared normal at routine post-operative assessments until the sudden onset of neurological deficits. Spinal trauma was suspected initially but radiography and scintigraphy were unremarkable. Due to the severity and progressive nature of the clinical signs the -gelding was subjected to euthanasia. Post mortem examinations (computed tomography, dissection and histopathology) revealed spinal cord compression caused by a single extradural hydatid cyst (Echinococcus equinus), confirmed with PCR, at the level of the 15th thoracic vertebra. This is the first report of a spinal hydatid cyst causing hindlimb ataxia and should therefore be considered a potential differential diagnosis for ataxia in the equine patient.
['Peter|V|V|', 'Marr|C|C|', 'Foote|A|A|', 'Auer|H|H|', 'Head|M|M|']
D000818:Animals D001259:Ataxia D004443:Echinococcosis D004446:Echinococcus D037901:Euthanasia, Animal D006614:Hindlimb D006734:Horse Diseases D006736:Horses D008297:Male D013117:Spinal Cord Compression
hydatid cyst hindlimb ataxia Horse spinal cord Ataxie Bildgebende Diagnostik Hintergliedmasse Hydatidenzyste Pferd Rückenmark atassia degli arti posteriori ataxie des membres postérieurs cavallo cheval cisti idatidea imagerie imaging kyste hydatique moelle épinière spina dorsale