Histopathological characterization of splenic lesions in splenectomized dogs
Keywords:
Histopathological characterization, splenectomy, hemangiossarcoma, splenic lesion, neoplasmAbstract
The spleen plays vital roles in the immune and hematopoietic systems of dogs. Splenic abnormalities are common and frequently diagnosed, requiring precise evaluations to determine the appropriate course of treatment. In veterinary medicine, there is no consensus on differentiating these alterations; therefore, a commonly used practice is total splenectomy followed by histopathological evaluation. Histopathological evaluation of a large number of spleen lesions can draw veterinarians' attention to the percentage of reactive or benign splenic lesions in dogs, guiding them to find new differentiation patterns for these lesions before performing splenectomy. This study reviewed 1,164 cases of splenic lesions in dogs between 2008 and 2018. The data reveal that 55.9% of the lesions are non-neoplastic, while 34.7% are malignant neoplasms, with splenic hemangiosarcoma (HSA) being prominent. Benign neoplasms represented 9.4% of the samples. The average age of the animals ranges from 9.7 to 10.5 years, depending on the type of lesion. Mixed-breed dogs are most affected, representing 25.6% of the cases. These results underscore the importance of histopathological evaluation in differentiating between benign and malignant lesions. Additionally, they suggest that many splenectomies could have been avoided with a better understanding of the characteristics of splenic lesions. These findings have significant implications for surgical decision-making, highlighting the need for a more careful and individualized approach to the treatment of splenic
lesions in dogs.
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