Franck Forterre

Universität Bern | UniBe · Vetsuisse Faculty

The feasibility of a newly developed augmentation of ventral fixation technique for surgical stabilization of atlantoaxial instability was clinically evaluated in a cohort of eleven dogs, and long-term clinical outcomes were retrospectively analyzed. The new technique combines wire/suture fixation through a transverse hole in the axis anchored by t...

Objective: To report surgical site infections (SSI) after Tibial Plateau Leveling Osteotomy (TPLO), treatment course, associated risk factors, bacterial isolates and antimicrobial resistance. Study design: Retrospective clinical cohort study. Study population: Six hundred and twenty seven dogs and 769 TPLO procedures. Methods: Data from elec...

In this proof-of-concept, bone neoformation beyond the skeletal envelope is explored by using a collagen pouch (n = 6) packed with calcium phosphate (CaP) granules placed over the frontal bone in sheep (n=3). At 13 weeks, macroscopic examination showed specimens covered by an adherent fibrinous envelope with slight vascularization. Histology reveal...

Background Intervertebral disc disease (IVDD) is a common diagnosis and well-investigated pathological condition in French Bulldogs with neurological deficiencies. However there is currently only one recently published retrospective descriptive study looking for recurrence rates of IVDD in French Bulldogs. Medical reports of French Bulldogs with a...

Neospora caninum is an apicomplexan parasite that causes abortion and stillbirth in cattle. We employed the pregnant neosporosis mouse model to investigate the efficacy of a modified version of the attenuated Listeria monocytogenes vaccine vector Lm3Dx_NcSAG1, which expresses the major N. caninum surface antigen SAG1. Multivalent vaccines were gene...

Objectives This retrospective study evaluates the dog-related factors of variation influencing the outcome of the flexion test (FT), when performed to localize pain to a joint area, on a large group of canine orthopedic patients. Materials and methods The selection criteria for this retrospective study were dogs undergoing a FT in a referral ortho...

Hepatic surgeries are often performed in cats to obtain a disease diagnosis, for the removal of masses, or for the treatment of shunts. Whereas the vascular anatomy of the liver has been studied in dogs, such evidence is lacking in cats. The current study used corrosion casts of portal and hepatic veins and computed tomography (CT) analysis of the...

A 9-year-old female mixed-breed dog presented for treatment of a presumed sphenoid-wing meningioma. Clinical signs included tonic-clonic seizures lasting <1 min, which had started 3 months previously. The physical examination results were unremarkable. An eccentrically located neoplastic cystic structure in the right sphenoid bone region suggestive...

Objectives: To describe a novel transforaminal approach for surgical excision of the atlantoaxial (AA) band and examine its feasibility, safety, and mechanical advantages in an ex vivo study and clinical cases. Samples: 26 canine cadavers and 2 canine patients with AA bands. Procedures: The transforaminal approach via the first intervertebral...

Objectives The aim of this study was to describe the method and feasibility of the flexion test (FT) as a diagnostic tool to localize lameness on dogs. Study Design Canine FT was designed and based on the FT routinely used on horses. In dogs, the test consisted in a flexion of a joint to its full range of motion for 1 minute. Eventual increased lam...

Objectives: The main aim of this study was to evaluate the feasibility of minimally invasive stabilization with polyaxial screws-rod using neuronavigation and to assess accuracy and safety of percutaneous drilling of screw corridors using neuronavigation in thoracolumbar spine and compare it between an experienced and a novice surgeon. Study desi...

Objective The aim of this study was to evaluate differences in paraspinal musculature between dogs with and without atlantoaxial instability (AAI) using computed tomography scans. Study Design Retrospective multicentre study evaluating transverse reconstructed computed tomography scans of 83 small breed dogs (34 with and 49 without AAI) for the cro...

Background: As they have been seldomly described in the veterinary literature, the aims of this retrospective study were to describe the clinical presentation, MRI findings and long-term outcome after medical or surgical treatment of dogs presenting with foraminal and far lateral thoracolumbar intervertebral disc herniations. Methods: Retrospect...

Objective: To determine cutoff values for the diagnosis of atlantoaxial instability (AAI) based on cross-sectional imaging in small-breed dogs. Study design: Retrospective multicenter study. Sample population: Client-owned dogs (n = 123) and 28 cadavers. Methods: Dogs were assigned to three groups: a control group, a "potentially unstable" g...

The aim of the present study was to evaluate the use of a novel intraoperative cone-beam computed tomography (CBCT)-based automated registration system for frameless stereotactic brain biopsy in companion animals. An experimental cadaveric study evaluated thalamic and piriform lobe target site needle placement error in three dogs and three cats wit...

Background: Intervertebral disc extrusions in the thoracolumbar region are a common spinal neurologic disorder in dogs and usually considered a neurological emergency. Several factors, like timing of surgery, have previously been analysed in order to determine the effect on outcome and time of recovery. Most studies have investigated one defined p...

Objective: To objectively assess the cervical paraspinal musculature of French bulldogs (FBs) using computed tomography (CT) scan-based measurements, outline differences in other breeds published in the literature, and investigate the potential influence of its cervical paraspinal musculature on predisposed sites for intervertebral disk disease. An...

In the last decades, the scientific community spared no effort to elucidate the therapeutic potential of mesenchymal stromal cells (MSCs). Unfortunately, in vitro cellular senescence occurring along with a loss of proliferative capacity is a major drawback in view of future therapeutic applications of these cells in the field of regenerative medici...

Objective: To compare the biomechanical properties of atlantoaxial joints (AAJs) in canine vertebral column specimens stabilized with 4 techniques (dorsal wire, modified dorsal clamp, ventral transarticular pin, and augmented ventral transarticular pin fixation) after transection of the AAJ ligaments. Sample: 13 skull and cranial vertebral colum...

Listeria monocytogenes (LM) has been proposed as vaccine vector in various cancers and infectious diseases since LM induces a strong immune response. In this study, we developed a novel and safe LM-based vaccine vector platform, by engineering a triple attenuated mutant (Lm3Dx) (ΔactA, ΔinlA, ΔinlB) of the wild-type LM strain JF5203 (CC 1, phylogen...

Objective The aim of this study was to validate an imaging technique for evaluation of spinal surgery accuracy and to establish accuracy and safety of freehand technique in the thoracolumbar spine of large breed dogs. Study Design After thoracolumbar spine computed tomography (CT), 26 drilling corridors were planned then drilled to receive 3.2 mm p...

Background: Congenital vertebral body malformations (CVBMs) have retrospectively been investigated in British and American canine populations. This study prospectively evaluates occurrence, localization, type and characteristic of CVBM along the entire vertebral column in a cohort of French Bulldogs, English Bulldogs and Pug dogs from Germany. Me...

Objective The study aimed to determine the influence of head neck position on imaging measurements used to assess the craniovertebral junction (CVJ) and to recommend the most appropriate position for the evaluation of the CVJ. Study Design A cross-sectional sample of adult dogs' cadavers was subjected to a computed tomography scan of the cranium an...

Objective: To determine whether a customized unilateral intervertebral anchored fusion device combined with (vs without) an intervertebral spacer would increase the stability of the L1-L2 motion segment following complete intervertebral diskectomy in canine cadaveric specimens. Sample: Vertebral columns from T13 through L3 harvested from 16 skel...

Abstract Objective: To determine whether a customized unilateral intervertebral anchored fusion device combined with (vs without) an intervertebral spacer would increase the stability of the L1-L2 motion segment following complete intervertebral diskectomy in canine cadaveric specimens. Sample: Vertebral columns from T13 through L3 harvested from...

Background: Canine intervertebral disc disease (IVDD) represents a significant clinical problem in veterinary medicine, with similarities to the human pathology. Host-derived damage-associated molecular patterns like fibronectin fragments (FnF) that develop during tissue dysfunction may be of specific relevance to IVD pathologies by inducing an inf...

Objective: To assess and objectively quantify, with CT-scan exams, differences in cervical paraspinal musculature and vertebrae angulation that might influence the different predisposed sites for intervertebral disk disease observed in chondrodystrophic and non-chondrodystrophic breeds. Sample: Retrospective evaluation and analysis of cervical spin...

Background: Reports of osteoblastic tumours are limited to a few case reports in veterinary medicine. Osteoblastoma-like osteosarcoma has been accepted by the World Health Organization as an intermediate form between an osteosarcoma and osteoblastoma. This type of tumour indicates an osteosarcoma, that may resemble osteoblastoma clinically, histol...

1 Summary In the last decades, the scientific community spared no effort to elucidate the therapeutic potential of mesenchymal stromal cells (MSCs). Unfortunately, in vitro cellular senescence occurring along with a loss of proliferative capacity is a major drawback in view of future therapeutic applications of these cells in the field of regenera...

Canine intervertebral disc disease is one of the most common neurologic conditions in veterinary medicine but the influence of environmental factors thereon has not been fully investigated. Subjectively, there has been the impression of increased admissions of acute spinal cord injuries due to intervertebral disc extrusion during periods of colder...

Introduction: Canine interverterbral disc (IVD), although physiologically acellular, displays an inflammatory cell population consisting almost exclusively of macrophages (Mϕ) when acutely herniated. Mϕ encompass a heterogenous cell population, roughly divided into classically (M1) or alternatively activated (M2)Mϕ. Polarization into M1 Mϕ leads to...

The atlantoaxial joint can be affected by instability, in most cases a congenital pathology in young small breed dogs. Causes of atlantoaxial instability (AAI) are variable but are usually attributed to a lack of ligamentous support. The purpose of the present study was to specify the role of the ligamentous structures in the stabilisation of the a...

Facial nerve damage has a detrimental effect on a patient's life, therefore safety mechanisms to ensure its preservation are essential during lateral skull base surgery. During robotic cochlear implantation a trajectory passing the facial nerve at <0.5 mm is needed. Recently a stimulation probe and nerve monitoring approach were developed and intro...

A large variety of etiologies is considered to be the cause of nerve root syndrome in dogs. Lateralized disc herniation, foraminal stenosis and malignant as well as benign nerve sheath tumors are some of the most important triggers described. The clinical signs of a nerve root syndrome are characterized by monoparesis in combination with progressiv...

Zusammenfassung Gegenstand und Ziel Der Bandscheibenvorfall (BSV) ist eine häufige neurologische Erkrankung bei Hunden, der in vielen Fällen chirurgisch behandelt werden kann. Retrospektiv sollten bei solchen Patienten mögliche Einflussfaktoren wie Signalement, Lokalisation oder Schweregrad des BSV sowie Erfahrung des Operateurs auf das langfristig...

Background In human medicine, fractures of the second cervical vertebra have been studied elaborately and categorized in detail. This is not the case in veterinary medicine where clinical decisions are often based on old studies focusing on the cervical spine in general. Objectives The aim of this study was to describe the clinical features, fractu...

Purpose Tumor volume in locally advanced head and neck squamous cell carcinomas (LAHNSCC) treated by induction chemotherapy (ICT) and followed by radiochemotherapy (RCT) was measured. The presence of potential correlation of initial tumor volume and volume reduction after ICT and RCT with remission status, overall survival (OS) and disease-free sur...

Objectives The purpose of this study was to assess the short-term outcome of a new intervertebral anchored fusion device (C-LOX) for the treatment of disc associated cervical spondylomyelopathy (DA-CSM) in dogs, based on clinical and radiographical follow-up data. Materials and Methods To be included in the study, dogs had to be clinically affected...

Objective: The main purpose of this study was to define criteria to systemically describe craniovertebral junction (CVJ) anomalies and to report the prevalence of CVJ anomalies in small breed dogs with and without atlantoaxial instability (AAI). Methods: Retrospective multicentre matched case-control study evaluating magnetic resonance imaging a...

Objective: To establish sagittal area and length reference values and ratios between apparently normal canine cervical vertebrae and intervertebral disks using magnetic resonance imaging. Sample: Retrospective evaluation of cervical vertebral column magnetic resonance imaging studies of 44 dogs representing 5 different breeds (Labrador Retriever, n...

Introduction Biomechanical properties of four different ventral surgical procedures at the canine fourth-fifth cervical (C4–C5) vertebral motion unit (VMU) were assessed and compared with the intact C4–C5 VMU. Materials and Methods The third-sixth cervical vertebral column from 24 skeletally mature Beagle cadavers were randomly allocated to four gr...

Reported studies pertaining to needle guidance suggest that tissue impedance available from neuromonitoring systems can be used to discriminate nerve tissue proximity. In this pilot study, the existence of a relationship between intraoperative electrical impedance and tissue density, estimated from computer tomography (CT) images, is evaluated in t...

Muscle signal alteration detected on MRI is seen in diverse pathologic conditions. We observed signal alterations within the paraspinal muscles in dogs with acute thoracolumbar intervertebral disk extrusion. The aim of this retrospective study was to describe MRI features of paraspinal muscle signal alteration in dogs with acute thoracolumbar inter...

Figure S1. Distribution of clinical factors among 80 dogs with thoracolumbar intervertebral disc extrusion evaluated in a previous study of Fadda et al. Chondrodystrophic breeds are indicated by black and non‐chondrodystrophic by gray columns.

Figure S2. Distribution of calcification, necrosis and inflammation grades in the epidural material of 80 dogs with thoracolumbar intervertebral disc extrusion evaluated in a previous study of Fadda et al. Chondrodystrophic breeds are indicated by black and non‐chondrodystrophic by gray columns.

Intervertebral disc herniation (IVDH) is an important pathology in humans and also in dogs. While the molecular disease mechanisms are well investigated in humans, little is known about the inflammatory mediators in naturally occurring canine IVDH. The objec-tive of this study was to investigate whether the involved proinflammatory cytokines in hum...

Inflammatory processes in canine disc herniation.

Background: Although the basic pathophysiology is the same in both cervical and thoracolumbar intervertebral disk (IVD) extrusions, there are considerable clinical differences that have only been partially explained. Hypothesis/objectives: The epidural inflammatory response differs between cervical and thoracolumbar IVD extrusions. Animals: Fi...

Objective To study the biomechanical effect of facetectomy in 10 large breed dogs (>24 kg body weight) on the fourth canine cervical functional spinal unit. Methods Canine cervical spines were freed from all muscles. Spines were mounted on a six-degrees-of-freedom spine testing machine for three-dimensional motion analysis. Data were recorded with...

Objective To evaluate the occurrence and frequency of abnormalities at the second and third cervical vertebral junction (C2/3) in dogs with and without atlantoaxial instability (AAI). Study Design Retrospective multi-institutional case-controlled case series. Animals One hundred and seventeen dogs with AAI and 117 dogs without AAI. Methods Radiogra...

Objective: To determine the effects of a minimally invasive transilial vertebral (MTV) blocking procedure on the computed tomographic (CT) appearance of the lumbosacral (L7/S1) junction of dogs with degenerative lumbosacral stenosis (DLSS). Study design: Prospective study. Animals: 59 client-owned dogs with DLSS. Methods: Lumbosacral CT imag...

Diaphysare Femurfrakturen kommen bei der Katze relativ haufig vor und basieren meist auf einem traumatischen Ursprung. Es gibt mehrere Moglichkeiten, die Frakturen zu fixieren, aber es ist schwierig zu sagen, welche Methode die beste ist. Die Autoren vergleichen daher 2 Fixationsmethoden, um eine Aussage uber die Komplikationsrate zu treffen.

Objectives: Atlantoaxial instability has been reported in humans, dogs, equids and ruminants. The functional role of the atlantoaxial ligaments has only been described rudimentarily in equids and ruminants. The goal of the present cadaveric study was to compare the anatomy between the different species and to comparatively assess the role of the s...

Objective: Dogs and cats with traumatic or iatrogenic partial sciatic nerve lesions frequently have disparate clinical signs. Cats commonly walk with a plantigrade posture in the affected pelvic limb, which is rarely observed in dogs. We hypothesized that the tibial nerve would be localized more laterally in cats and medially in dogs, and that the...

Die Achillessehnenruptur ist beim Kleintier eine seltene Erkrankung mit einer guten Prognose. In der Therapie stellt die Immobilisation und die anschliesende Mobilisation der Gliedmase den wichtigsten Faktor dar, wobei in diesem Zusammenhang auch am meisten Komplikationen zu verzeichnen sind.

Um die 60 Publikationen befassen sich mit der atlantoaxialen Instabilitat und ihrer Therapie. Eine generelle Empfehlung fur die ideale Behandlungsmethode kann daraus aber nicht abgeleitet werden. Es muss fur jeden Patienten individuell entschieden werden, von welcher Technik er am meisten profitiert.

Die Wirbelsaulen von Hund und Mensch weisen sowohl anatomisch als auch funktionell einige Gemeinsamkeiten, aber auch Unterschiede auf. Da der Hund oft als Modell fur Bandscheibenproblematiken in der Humanmedizin herangezogen wird, lohnt es sich, diese Thematik genauer zu betrachten. Interessant ist auch die Herangehensweise im Bereich der Therapie,...

Background: The pathophysiology of ascending/descending myelomalacia (ADMM) after canine intervertebral disk (IVD) extrusion remains poorly understood. Vasoactive molecules might contribute. Hypothesis/objectives: To investigate the immunoreactivity of endothelin-1 (ET-1) in the uninjured and injured spinal cord of dogs and its potential associa...

A 1.5-year-old Chihuahua was presented with clinical signs consistent with multifocal localisation. MRI revealed hydrocephalus internus. Following placement of a ventriculoperitoneal (VP) shunt with a low-pressure valve, improvement was noted. Clinical signs returned one month later. A second MRI revealed subdural haematoma, meningeal reaction and...

Table S1. Part 1—Number of endothelin‐1 positively stained astrocytes in 3 randomized visual fields and the intensity of staining expressed in grades 1–4, respectively, and the resulting distribution of grades in the center and remote segments of the spinal cord in affected and in control dogs; Part 2—Percentage of endothelin‐1 positively stained n...

The neck skeleton is constituted as a highly mobile, multi-element and multi-joint kinematic chain. This construction leads to a kinematic redundancy on several levels. The problem of coordinating a large number of joints and muscles is solved by reducing the degrees of freedom to only few preferred motor axes. This is achieved by the regionalizati...

Objective To compare the biomechanical properties of a ventral transarticular lag screw fixation technique, a new dorsal atlantoaxial instability (AAI) clamp, and a new ventral AAI hook plate under sagittal shear loading after transection of the ligaments of the atlantoaxial joint.Study DesignCadaveric biomechanical study.AnimalsCanine cadavers (n...

Background context: In canine intervertebral disc (IVD) extrusion, a spontaneous animal model of spinal cord injury, haemorrhage is a consistent finding. In rodent models, haemorrhage might be involved in secondary tissue destruction by biochemical mechanisms. Purpose: To investigate a causal association between the extents of intramedullary, su...

Objective To assess intramedullary spinal pressure (IMP) in small breed dogs with thoracolumbar disk extrusion.Study DesignProspective cohort study.AnimalsSmall breed dogs (n = 14) with thoracolumbar disk extrusion undergoing hemilaminectomy and healthy chondrodystrophic laboratory dogs (control; n = 3) without spinal disease.Methods Diagnosis was...

The biomechanical properties of the atlanto-axial joint in a young Yorkshire Terrier dog with spontaneous atlantoaxial instability were compared to those of another young toy breed dog with a healthy atlantoaxial joint. The range-of-motion was increased in flexion and lateral bending in the unstable joint. In addition, lateral bending led to torsio...

To assess the influence of the use of Gelpi and Grevel retractors on multifidus muscle blood flow during hemilaminectomy, using a dorsolateral approach, for acute disc extrusion in dogs as measured by laser speckle contrast imaging (LSCI). Blood flow in the multifidus muscles was measured intra-operatively using LSCI prior to insertion of the retra...

To assess intrathecal pressure (ITP) in chondrodystrophic dogs with thoracolumbar disk extrusion. Prospective cohort study. Group 1: 11 chondrodystrophic dogs with thoracolumbar disk extrusion and present deep pain sensation. Group 2 (control): 3 healthy chondrodystrophic laboratory dogs without spinal disease. Diagnosis was based on neurologic sig...

CSF shunting and durotomy are both effective at controlling intracranial pressure and improving outcome. One could argue that the durotomy should result in free flow of CSF in order to be effective, but in practice, in patients with paraplegia and loss of deep pain perception that might benefit from such an intervention, the spinal cord frequently...

Removal of the compressive disc material is the main objective of surgical treatment of thoracolumbar disc herniation. The most common surgical techniques can be classified into three types: hemilaminectomy, partial corpectomy, and dorsal laminectomy. Combination of these techniques might also be possible in some instances and may also help to solv...