• Join RCVS and European Neurology Specialists Simon Platt and Laurent Garosi for three 2-hour online sessions and discover the best options for your spinal patients
• Comprehensive notes to downloaded
• Self-assessment quizzes to ‘release’ your 8 hours CPD certification (don’t worry, you can take them more than once if you don’t quite hit the mark first time)
• A whole year’s access to recorded sessions for reviewing key points
• Superb value for money – learn without travelling
• Watch the recordings on your iPad!
• This Mini Series was originally broadcast live in October 2016.

Programme

Disc Disease

In the first of the three spinal surgery focused sessions, we will describe the three types of disc disease and focus on how they classically affect the cervical and thoracolumbar spinal cord on an acute and chronic basis. We will discuss the clinical presentations and diagnosis of these conditions as well the medical and surgical treatment options. The surgical indications and types of surgical decompression will be detailed in a step by step fashion. Both the hemilaminectomy and ventral slot will be described using video footage. The complications and prognosis of these surgical approaches will be addressed,as will bladder management in recumbent dogs.

What you’ll learn:

• Characteristics of acute and chronic disc disease
• Imaging diagnosis of disc disease
• Treatment options for disc disease
• Ventral slot and hemilaminectomy techniques

Wobblers and Lumbosacral Disease

In the second session focused on surgical diseases of the spine, we will discuss what have commonly but probably incorrectly been referred to as the ‘chronic spinal instabilities’. These include wobbler syndrome and lumbosacral degeneration. Both of these conditions are chronic and can be due to congenital malformations of the associated vertebrae and/or secondary to type II disc disease and accompanying soft and osseous tissue proliferation. The clinical characteristics and diagnostic criteria for these conditions will be detailed during these lectures. Indications and success rates for a medical or surgical approach will be presented followed by detailed descriptions of the surgical techniques most commonly used to treat the dogs affected.

What you’ll learn:

• Clinical characteristics of wobbler syndrome and lumbosacral degeneration
• Imaging diagnosis of wobbler syndrome and lumbosacral degeneration
• Cervical vertebral distraction and fixation techniques
• Lumbosacral vertebral fixation techniques

Spinal Fractures and Luxations

In the final of the three spinal surgery sessions, we will focus on the challenges faced when we are dealing with spinal column fractures and luxations. The underlying mechanisms of spinal injury following trauma to the spinal column will be presented with a brief discussion of the pros and cons of a medical approach to treatment. Specifically the first hour will detail atlantoaxial subluxation in terms of its presentation, imaging diagnosis and treatment options. A step by step approach to the surgical stabilisation of this joint will be demonstrated along with the precautions taken and the possible complications. In the second hour, we will focus on throacolumbar spinal column fractures and luxations. The imaging diagnosis of vertebral column instability will be reviewed for the purpose of determining which cases have an absolute requirement for surgical fixation. The mechanisms of throacolumbar vertebral fixation will be detailed at the end of this session.

What you’ll learn:

• Simplified overview of biomechanics of vertebral column
• Clinical characteristics of atlantoaxial subluxation
• Imaging of AA subluxation
• Thoracolumbar fracture investigation
• Surgical techniques of thoracolumbar trauma repair