ULTRASONOGRAPHIC CHARACTERISTICS AND MEASUREMENTS OF SPLEEN OF HEALTHY PUPPIES AND KITTENS

The aim of the study was to analyze and compare the characteristics and ultrasound measurements of the spleen of healthy puppies and kittens, establishing normal standards and landmarks. We used 15 healthy male dogs and 15 healthy male cats, mixed breed and average age of six months. They were divided into two groups: G1 with 15 puppies with an average weight of 3 kg and G2 with 15 kittens with an average weight of 2 kg. The animals underwent ultrasound examination of the spleen for visualization of internal characteristics and measurement of the organ. The structural characteristics was analyzed and compared between the two species through the images obtained in the exam. The measurements were compared statistically using the SPSS program, with analysis of variance (ANOVA) followed by Tukey test (P ˂ 0.05). In both groups, we observed the splenic artery showed smaller diameter than the splenic veins. In puppies and kittens, the echotexture was visualized homogeneous and finely granular. The puppy’s spleen tends to be bigger in length (6.87 ± 0.03 cm) and width (5.95 ± 0.07 cm) in relation to spleen length (4,53 ± 0,02 cm)) and width (4.55 ± 0.04) in kittens. We concluded there is no difference of echotexture and splenic echogenicity between puppies and kittens, and the spleen of puppies showed bigger dimensions than in kittens. Keywords: echogenicity; size; small animals; spleen; ultrasound.