EQUINE DIAGNOSTC IMAGING

FETLOCK
Fetlock imaging requires 4 different views:
1. Dorsopalmar/plantar (DP/DPI) – angled down 15-30 deg so that you don’t get
superimposition of the sesamoid bones (can also include a flexed DP) *On DP view of
fetlock - Can tell lateral from medial because lateral condyle is shorter than medial
condyle (sagittal crest in middle separating lateral from medial condyle) Lateral sesamoid
is more triangular/L shaped while medial sesamoid is more rounded.

2. Lateromedial (can also include a flexed LM) *Halo around condyle is sagittal ridge

3. DLPMO – dorsolateral palmeromedial oblique – beam placed at dorsolateral angle and

plate placed at palmaromedial angle. In the image generated, the surfaces will be opposite
to the name of the view = you will see Dorsomedial and Palmerolateral instead of
dorsolateral/palmeromedial. 4th carpal bone is located on the palmerolateral side (right
side of radiograph) and articulates with the cannon bone and lateral splint bone.

4. DMPLO – dorsomedial palmerolateral oblique. Splint bones usually located palmar, so

the splint bone on the right is the medial splint.
*Linear/granular appearance – normal trabecular pattern of the bones on x-ray.
*Cant tell DMPLO from DLPMO unless there is a label/marker.
CASE 1 – lateromedial, exposure is sufficient. Remodelling (area of white near end of condyle,
trabecular pattern not seen clearly here). Minimal soft tissue swelling. DP and oblique views
recommended. Sclerotic line (proximal aspect of the fracture where the bone overlaps).
2nd pic – complete fracture on lateral aspect. Mild displacement. (complete minimally displaced
frature of the condyle). May get callous formation near fracture site. Orthopaedic implants
(screws) can help if placed in LAG fashion (over drill the near cortex to same diameter as screw
and then another smaller screw at the other end so that when the screw is tightened it pulls the
bone with fracture back together and prevents displacement).
-The screw should be lower and closer to the articular surface of the sesamoids to get a better
squeeze and closure.
SCREWS – cortical mainly used in horses
Wolff’s law of bone – natural healthy bones will adapt and change to adapt to the stress
that it is subjected to.
DLPMO – highlights dorsomedial palmarolateral aspect – to see bilateral sesamoid fracture -
sesamoids located at the back of the leg
Flexed lateromedial view -lifts sesamoids off the back of the fetlock
*Stress radiograph – collateral ligament disruption – causing joint luxation. Fragments also
present. Treatment is casting for some time.
*Umbilicus is a common site of acquiring infection/sepsis
-Osteochondrosis or Sepsis – main causes of sagittal ridge deformation
*Marked radioluscency in physeal
NB – PIP OA – left image (bone scan)
TYPES OF PLATES – first started with DCP (dynamic compression plate, then went to LCDCP
(limited contact dynamic compression plate), and now we are at LCP (locking compression
plate)

SMALL ANIMAL
DYSPLASIA – usually means of genetic origin
OFA VIEW for hip dysplasia – animal under general anaesthesia or deeply sedated, ventrodorsal
recumbency, femur cond
Structures you can use to assess the radiograph - Ileum, acetabulum, ischium, pubis,
-dorsal acetabular margin – seen as vertical line through femoral head (brighter white contrast
due to summation/overlaping). Tells you how much of the femoral head sits in the acetabulum.
(greater = more coverage) In picture (pg. 6) left coxofemoral joint has better coverage than right.
HIP SOUNDNESS on radiograph - A dog with sound hips must have >50% femoral head
coverage bilaterally. Femoral heads should also be nice and round – trace cranial
acetabular margin and cranial part of femoral head and make sure there is no overlapping
because those 2 curves should be symmetrical and parallel to eachother. Femoral neck
should be smooth, well defined, and thinner than femoral head. Acetabulum should be
deep and not shallow.
Enthesiophyte, osteophyte = occurs when bone rubs on bone to produce more bone in the joint
capsule (sclerotic)
CHRONIC = secondary signs of osteolysis seen
, obturator foramen symmetry, pelvic inlet should be circular, sacroiliac joint (wing of ileum
reaches sacral bone), (cartilagenous on radiograph therefore it is radioluscent),
-coxofemoral joint where head of femur attaches – observe muscles and soft tissue around the
joint. Is there evidence of muscle atropy, is muscle on one side smaller than other (disuse
atrophy)
NB - Always assume on vd that the left side is your right and vice versa.
NB – further away from table = bigger it appears on xray
*Femoral head = capital physis/epiphysis
*Salter harris fracture will have soft tissue swelling. When fracture seen in young cat, and it
slipped from the growth plate, it is likely salter harris 1 (acquired/hereditary). Traumatic hip
dysplasia is less likely to be bilateral.
MCE (multiple cartilagenous exostoses) – where cartilage was supposed to form bone but
instead forms a benign tumor and appears radioluscent on radiograph because cartilage is
radioluscent. Ostochondroma is when it is present in 1 bone, MCE when present in multiple
bones.

ELBOW DYSPLASIA – 8 views (4 on each side). Craniocaudal, mediolateral and 2 oblique

views (e.g., craniolateral caudomedial oblique or hyperflexed lateral).

SOFT TISSUE
THORACIC CAVITY
LUNGS
Thorax – minimum of 4 views: Left lateral , right lateral , DV and VD. High kVp and low
mAs because thorax is a quickly moving location.
Ventrodorsal view – appropriate for lung views because the body will not be compressing the
lungs. Contraindicated in dyspnoeic dogs/dogs with respiratory distress (will accept dorsoventral
in this case).
Dorsoventral – appropriate for viewing the heart because the heart is located closer to the
sternum.
Tremendous overlap and superimposition between lung lobes.
Page 5 - Left lateral (left pic) – ventral part of cranial lung lobe can be assessed, everything else
superimposed. Middle lung lobe is superimposed with the heart on a lateral view.
A – accessory lung lobe – inspiratory view should be taken because of the caudal location of the
diaphram (expiratory view will cause diaphram to move cranial). Accessory lobe located
between heart and diaphram and lies more medial, even tho is located on right lung.
Blood vessels vs bronchi – vessels have blood which is liquid so it will appear gray, while brochi
are filled with air and will appear black.
and ventrodorsal (right pic)
Pleural – visceral VP (attached to lungs/viscera) and parietal PP(attached to cavity wall) and the
space between two pleura is the pleural space. (microscopic layer)
Mediastinum – everything that isnt lung.
>Cranial mediastinum – trachea, lymph nodes, esophagus, cranial vena cava, subclavian artery,
>Middle mediastinum – contains heart
>Caudal mediastinum
Mediastinal pleura – space where parietal pleura meets sternum and goes up toward middle of
both lungs (dotted line).
*Need wedge under patient during lateral view to keep sternum parallel to vertebral column.
Cranial abdominal cavity may have clues (abdominal hernias), so in a small dog, always try to
get a view inclusive of the cranial abdomen.
Heart, trachea, oesophagus, ascending aorta, cranial vena cava, lymph nodes – all are soft tissue
fluid except trachea which sits slighty to right of vertebral column.
Bronchus runs between artery and vein (slide 7 right pic) beneath white line on left side. So you
see white (artery), black (bronchus), white (vein)
-Esophagus, caudal vena cava, descending aorta – structures running through diaphram into
abdomen. Central part of diaphram is tendinous and the rest is muscular.
LL vs RL Dorsal one is artery and ventral one is vein.
Find where artery and vein cross rib 4 and measure against width of rib 4 (should be about
75% the size of rib 4).
Caudal vena cava passes through right side of diaphram, aorta sits middle and descending aorta
runs through left side. (slide 11). Crus – muscular attachment of diaphram to vertebral column
(left and right crura). RL – crura run parallel to eachother, LL – crura move away from eachother
(diverge and make a V shape).
Body weight, stomach (fondus) and liver push right crus cranial to the left crus on LL view.
Caudal vena cava bypasses the left crus and is going into right crus which is what it should do.
LL – apex of heart moves away from sternum and heart size will be smaller. So for cardiac
measurements, always use RL view.
RL – caudal vena cava hits right crus and disappears into 1st line because anatomically it passes
through the right side. Grayish black material near sternum of heart – FAT which is more
radioluscent than soft tissue. Fat in pericardial sac around patient’s heart and along pleural
spaces. Fat is not measured as part of heart.

DV vs VD – use caudal border of scapula as landmark.

>Arteries lie lateral to vein. Lateral vessel is artery, medial vessel is vein
(slide 30) Square shadow made by overlap of rib 9 and pulmonary vein. NORMAL (compared
to Lateral views where you compare to rib 4).
Shadow is a rectangle – vessels are wide. ABNORMAL (venous congestion)
VD – heart is elongated, smaller in width. Lung more aerated and looks blacker than in a DV.
You can see crura on diaphram (3 humps) whereas DV is one uniform line.
DV – diaphram is one curved structure. Lung cannot expand as well so looks more opaque due to
all structures pushing against it. Apex of heart sits more on left side.
*Equal amounts of air on equal side of body so heart sits in the middle. If it is not in the middle it
can indicate a disease or improper alignment of patient for the view.

LATERAL VIEW - Deep chested dog – apex looks upright and barely sitting on sternum. Heart
looks tall. Compared to bulldog (wide chested), more of heart sits on sternum
DV – heart occupies more space in brachycephalic animal and the animal is also fatter. (barrel
shaped chest, curved ribs with extreme angle of curvature).
Fat is friend of abdomen but enemy of thorax because it blurs the fine detail of the lungs

CAT (radiographic differences) – funnel/triangular shaped thorax. Sternebrae (8) , 1st and 8th
are elongated in shape while the others are rectangular in shape (even moreso in cat). Costal
cartilages are thin and whispy. Ribs point in a caudal fashion. Dorsal aspect of lung doesn’t go
all the way up to vertebral column.
Ribs will look floating on young animal because the cartilage is radioluscent.
Inspiratory view - Diaphram must reach vertebral column at minimum T10. Air in lungs so
blacker.
Expiratory view – Diaphram is cranial to T10, and is overlapping with the heart. Reduced depth
of thoracic cavity.
*end on blood vessels? Compared to airways
*Positive contrast agent – injected into anatomical structures and will appear brighter than bone
on radiograph.
Cranial part of heart is right side of heart, caudal part of heart is left side of heart and closer to
diaphagm. (Doesn’t matter if it’s a left lateral or right lateral). This is because the heart
doesn’t sit perfectly 90degs, perpendicular to body wall, but at a slant, whereby the left slant is
caudal and right slant is cranial
*Decubitus – may be used if you wanted to see gas/air in thorax
CHECK THORACIC WALL:
External soft tissue – check for emphysema (air trapped)
*Tracheal stripe sign – air in esophagus. Mild ventral displacement of the trachea caused by
esophageal distension. Border of dorsal tracheal wall and ventral esophageal wall.
*Standard cranial medastinum width = 2x. Larger than that could indicate abnormality like
swollen lymph nodes.

LYMPH NODES:
Mediastinal lymph node - Ventral to trachea, in cranial mediastinal space
Sternal lymph node – sitting dorsal to the second sternebrae . circumscribed soft tissue opacity.
Tracheobroncheal lymph nodes - Carina bifurfaction
Pneumomediastium – air in mediastinum – trauma/rupture of trachea, rupture of esophagus, any
wound in the neck region/neck lacerations (muscles of neck go into mediastinum). Can use
iodinated compound (positive contrast agent) to determine where the leak/rupture is. Cannot use
barium when there is a leakage because it can cause foreign body reaction.
Pneumothorax roentgen signs (lung collapsed, loss of air) cranial lobar blood vessels efaced
because the lungs not as opaque as blood vessels due to loss of air – apex of heart lifted off
sternum by air on lateral view. Treat by thoracocentesis
Lungs pulled away from ribcage/thoracic boundaries by air on DV. Heart shifted to side with
more collapse.
Hydrothorax/Pleural effusion roentgen signs– soft tissue/fluid separating lung from thoracic
wall. Do a VD view. Treat by drainage.
Flail chest – paradoxical respiration, series of ribs fractured (both dorsal and ventral part
fractured so they are no longer attached to rib cage). Middle section is detached from ribcage and
when the animal inspires the chest wall goes out and exhales it goes in. So with flail chest it does
the opposite. (Inspire = sucks in, Expire = pushes out) Therefore, paradoxical. Treatment is
achoring the rib segments back onto the ribcage.
 LUNG PATTERNS
Alveolar lung pattern – alveoli affected
Interstitial diseases – not the lung but interstitial tissues around the lung
Vacuolar – vessels affected
Bronchiolar – airways/bronchi affected
DISTRIBUTION:
Some patterns occur along base of heart (hilus)
ABNORMAL SIGNS – cannot see normal structures/landmarks in lung, vena cava etc. There is
also increased or decreased opacity within the lung

ALVEOLAR LUNG PATTERN

In normal lungs, airways (bronchi) and airsacs (alveoli) are air filled. There are also vessels
running along the bronchi, filled with blood so it will have a different opacity. Millions of airsacs
in the lungs making the lungs look black, providing natural visual differentiation between blood
vessels.
*Border efacement – if the aveoli have fluid/cellular material in them it appears as soft tissue
fluid opacity, making the differentiated borders disappear. The fluid could be anything (pus,
blood, chyle, exudate etc, cannot be differentiated on xray). Nothing happened to the airway
leading to the alveoli (still remains airfilled).
*Air bronchogram – air can be seen in the lumen/stalks/branches/bronchi of the airways. Only
the alveoli have fluid in them. Alveoli are microscopic but on xray it will appear as homogenous
soft tissue opacity.
Border efacement and air bronchogram are pathognomonic of aveolar lung patterns.
*Atelectasis occurs when there is pleural disease, lung has collapsed and lost volume. Negative
pressure lost in the pleural cavity and the lung will be pulled away from the body cavity.
Ways to alter Alveoli opacity = add fluid, add cells, or empty the alveoli (atelectasis)
*Silhouette sign – old term for border efacement. Mass in lung lobe adjacent to heart, you will
see the mass if there is air around/between the two. If there is no air, then you will get
efacement/silhouetting.
>Slide 9 – left pic normal airway, right pic - alveoli now as opaque as blood vessels, air only
seen in lumen (air bronchogram).
*bob obrien – radiologist
Firstly, name the lung patten, then state distribution, then use “help me”
H – haemorrhage – warfarin poisoning, vitamin K, trauma/accidents, etc
E- edema (pulmonary of cardiogenic edema) – 1 left sided heart failure, alveolar lung pattern
that is in the dorso-caudal lung lobe., 2 overhydrating a patient (volume overload causing
generalized pulmonary edema), 3 uraemia/azotemia (causes vasculitis – inflammation of blood
vessels and leakage of fluid causing generalized alveolar lung pattern). , 4 electrocution , 5
seizure/epilepsy
L- lymphoma – mediastinal/sternal/thoracic lymph nodes are big. Big lymph nodes + generalized
alveolar pattern = most likely lymphoma.
P- pneumonia – pus (bacterial bronchopneumonia), Bacteria is bigger than viruses (weight), so
bacterial causes cranioventral and middle lung lobe distribution of bacterial bronchopneumonia
(middle because the trachea divides and middle lung lobe division is very ventrally located).
Aspiration pneumonia – gravity takes the fluid cranioventrally and into the ventral lobes.
Viruses are lighter so will be located more dorsally in the lung (caudodorsal). Inhalation
pneumonia is also going to go dorsally because if it can be inhaled it is most likely lighter
(usually always right caudal lung lobe). Present generally as one homogenous area as opposed to
nodules.
M- mediastinal shift when empty – heart shifts, alveoli are empty, atelectasis occurs during
pleural effusion or pneumothorax/pleural disease. Pleural effusion appears as air moving lung
and heart while the other has fluid moving the lung and the heart.
>10 right picture – DV or VD view , difficulty seeing cardiac silhouette, air bronchograms,
increased soft tissue adjacent to left side of the heart (millions of diseased alveoli). 2 lung lobes
on left side cranial and caudal.
>11 Lateral view – border efacement of heart with increased soft tissue fluid opacity, seeing
lumen of airways but not border of airways (black tree branching in the snow storm). Alveolar
pattern (air seen the lumen but not in the lungs)

Cardiogenic pulmonary edema (pe)*border efacement of heart and diaphram, air bronchogram

INTERSTITIAL LUNG PATTERN

Structured/nodular interstitial lung pattern – has criteria to differentiate between end on
vessel:
Differentiated based on size, mass, milliary
Nodule - Circumscribed well defined borders with size > 0.5cm
Unstructured – caused if you didn’t take radiograph at height of inspiration (expiratory view,
iatrogenic), all diseases start off as unstructered interstitial pattern, therefore it doesn’t really help
to narrow down differentials.
Milliary - <0.5 cm, granular/pin point appearance but bigger than 2mm. Eyes can only see things
bigger than 2mm
Exception to unstructured -Pulmonary fibrosis – lung scarring because of disease. The only time
we see lines on lung is blood vessels, so if you see soft tissue lines area where blood vessel do
not run, or honey comb appearance = PULMONARY FIBROSIS.
*Slide 21 – CHANGE , N should be neoplasia not nodule.

BRONCHIAL PATTERN
Fluid or cellular material infiltrates and fills the wall of the airway, making it very thick. The
lumen is unaffected. On longitudinal view it looks like a “tramline”. End on view it may look
like a donut (wall is thickened but the inside is filled with air).
If airways begin to look widened, sacculated
Bronchial vs Alveolar pattern:
-Air in lumen seen plus walls of airway seen. Increase in soft tissue fluid opacity is not enough to
prevent you seeing the borders of adjacent structures (so you can still see blood vessels etc, NO
BORDER EFACEMENT – compared to alveolar pattern).

*Slide 40 - You know a cat because thin whispy costal cartilages, funnel shaped, lung doesn’t go
all the way up.
*Bronchiectasis – sacculated, wide airways - fluid/mucus fille

*CASE 1 (slide 54)

Dx – alveolar lung pattern. Distribution is dorsal – generalized bacterial bronchopneumonia with
abscesses. (starts off cranioventral and middle but can go all over). Some may have anaerobic
organisms so bullae being produced.
Juvenile patient, open growth plate, end plate not fused, no cartilagenous mineralization (floating
ribs), 5 and 6 sternabrae blocked/failed to separate. Thymus prominent in juvenile patient.
Trachea is okay. Cranial mediastinum has increased soft tissue fluid opacity. Cranial mediastinal
width compared to width of thoracic vertebrae . Sternal lymph node enlarged (sternal
lymphadenopathy). Border efacement (cant see caudal vena cava, aorta, branching vessels,
diaphram). Left side of diaphram more efaced. Lung didn’t move away from cavity.
Soft tissue nodules and bullae seen.
Lobar consolidation- entire lung lobe is diseased
Cranial lung field landmarks – cranial lobar artery and veins – cannot be seen (border efacement)
Black tree in snowstorm – air bronchograms. Walls of airway not seen (airbronchograms NOT
tramlines).
Border efacement of herringbone/christmas tree, increased soft tissue fluid opacity. On
orthogonal view, the left caudal lung lobe is more affected. Shape of left caudal lung lobe can be
seen, it is efacing the heart, increased soft tissue fluid opacity and air bronchograms.

CASE 2 –
Dx – Bronchiolar pattern, bronchitis. Bronchioalveolar lavage for diagnosis (look for fluid sitting
in airways, send it for culture and sensitivity).
Thymus not seen so mature patient, ribs connected, cartilagenous part is mineralized, no end
plates seen. Caudal vena cava, descending aorta, diaphram seen. Heart and diphram seen on
other view. Cranial lung field vessels seen, can be measured. Cranial lobar vessels measure
within normal limits (about 75% width of 4th rib). Cant be alveolar because there is not sufficient
efacement (can still see heart). Increased soft tissue fluid opacity. Donuts seen (airways on cross
section).
Not nodular and not vascular. Not enough efacement for alveolar, so therefore it is Bronchiolar.

CASE 3 – Structured interstitial lung pattern (use CHANGE to get ddx),

DDx – primary lung tumors (singular large lesions) - nodules, neoplasia, granuloma.
Diagnosis – biopsy to confirm
emaciated patient, little soft tissue covering the patient. Sternum and vertebrae unaffected.
Trachea parallel to vertebral column.
Cranial mediastinum – enlarged sternal ln. Caudal mediastinum – increased soft tissue fluid
opacity (cant see diaphram). Lung – cranial lung field can see blood vessels – measure artery
against vein and measure both against rib 4 – about 75% of width so vessels measure within
normal limits.
Several circumscribed masses (>5cm) throughout lungs, compared to alveolar which is patchy
and not circumscribed.
CASE 4 -Dx – pleural effusion
Poor BCS, dorsally displaced trachea, heart, aorta, caudal vena cava, diaphram cannot be seen
(significant efacement). Lung not reaching body cavity – pulled away from thoracic boundaries,
not going all the way up to rib 1. Soft tissue fluid pulling the lung away from thoracic
boundaries, lung is collapsed and floating on fluid
*Interlobar fissuring – fluid seen between lung lobes (pleural effusion).

CASE 5 – Dx - pneumothorax
Heart no longer sits on sternum as it is pushed away by air.
Tx - Thoracocentesis

HEART
Right lateral (heart sits closer to sternum)
Measurements:
Lateral radiograph – 1st measurement - comparing height of heart to height of thoracic cavity –
should be about 2/3 of the length of thoracic height. Landmark is xymphoid – and go straight
up to vertebral column.
Height of heart = Black circle – bifurcation of trachea to the apex of heart, and compare it.
DV view – 2nd measurement - at intercostal space 6, measure width of thoracic cavity and then
measure width of heart. Should be 1/3 – 2/3 of the thoracic width
3rd measurement - Dotted yellow line – intercostal spaces to measure width of heart (normally 2
and a half to 3 and a half for dog),
4th measurement - How many sternaebrae does the apex of the heart make contact with (2-3
sternebrae is allowed to make contact on lateral view).
*Dorsal chambers are atria, ventral chambers are ventricles. (RA – right atrium, RV – right
ventricle, LA, LV).
-How many intercostal spaces does the heart take up, how many sternabrae does the heart sit on.
Vertical axis – length of heart = Carina/bifurcation of trachea/black circle is termination of
trachea into heart. Ventral border of carina to apex of heart . * Note that heart lies on angle so
draw vertical axis corresponding to the angle the heart lies. Horizontal axis axis is 90 deg to first
line. Compare each measurement to vertebral column starting from 4th vertebra (cranial edge of
T4) , and count how many vertebrae will make up each of the measurements. Add both
measurements together and normal should be 8.5 – 10.5 in dog. Enlarged heart = >10.5 and
should consider more diagnostics like echocardiography.

*Auricle – little blind pouch sitting on the atrium – bulge seen at 2-3 oclock as soft tissue fluid
opacity. Normal heart will NOT have any bulge from 12-3
-Left sided heart failure – venous congestion, goes back to lungs. Caudo-dorsal distribution on
lateral radiograph along the base of the heart. Cardiogenic pulmonary edema.
-Right sided heart failure – back up into caudal vena cava, cadual takes it back to liver causing
hepatic congestion and ascites. Also pleural effusion.

GLOBOSE HEART (circular enlarged heart) differentials:–

-DCM - dilated cardiomyopathy (cocker spaniels, boxers, dobermans, large breed dogs
-Pericardial effusion – fluid build up in the pericardial sac – will not be differentiatedfrom the
heart on radiograph because everything is soft tissue fluid opacity, appearing as a big round
heart.
-Pericardial peritoneal hernia – congenital abnormality, intestinal contents get into the pericardial
sac (can be differentiated if you see intestinal loops on xray)

*Septal defect – blood rushes to right ventricle, causing “reverse D” appearance

 RADIOLOGY OF THE ABDOMEN
ABDOMINAL ORGANS = all soft tissue fluid opacity
FAT = Different opacity than soft tissue (eg. Omentum, mesentery, perirenal fat) – needed to
differentiate between the abdominal organs
*friend is the friend of the abdomen but the enemy of the thorax
FACTORS AFFECTING ABDOMEN RADIOGRAPHY -Puppies have terrible contrast/poor
serosal detail – because their fat have high water content which is soft tissue fluid opacity.
Ascites will also affect abdominal organ radiographs because it is fluid.
RADIOGRAPHIC VIEWS = left lateral, right lateral, ventrodorsal
*VD preferred because it will not compress the organs from the animals body weight.
*Expiratory view done – because there will be more space when the diaphram moves back.
Contents of descending colon – has a granular mixed appearance because its function is to
absorb water. While the small intestine contents look different (fluid or air seen, differing
opacities).
Kvp – drop kvp when doing caudal abdomen compared to cranial due to change in thickness.
Barium can be placed topically on nipples so you wont confuse them for nodules on x-ray.

ULTRASONOGRAPHY
Linear ray – gives a rectangular shaped image. Used to view small areas. Disadvantage is detail
lost.
Curved/convex array – pie shaped image. Wider image produced = less detailed images.
*Fluid looks anechoic/black on ultrasound. Anechoic = free from echo because fluid does not
reflect the beam.
*Higher frequency = better detail
*Transducer frequencies – usually start from 3.5 – 8.
*Transrectal and transvaginal = usually for large animals

IMAGE DISPLAY FORMATS:

B-mode = Position of dot corresponds to location of tissue
M-mode = converts things to a 2D image
Doppler = tells you about blood flow
IMAGE DESCRIPTION CRITERIA:
-Echogenicity
-Texture
-Number – how many hypoechoic nodules/numerous nodules etc
-Position
-Shape – round/irregular/triangular
-Margination – poorly marginated/capsulated
-Artifacts – if present
*Hypoechoic – shades of gray
*Hyperechoic – bright/white
*Anechoic – black, but if fluid has pus/cells then it may not be completely back. (e.g pyometra)
*Isoechoic – comparing one structure to another (isoechoic to surrounding tissue but you saw a
margin around it)
*Mirror images – sometimes the diaphram will be mirrored
Type of crystal and electrical voltage will determine the frequency
Low acoustic impedance = more hyperechoic
Higher frequency = lower ability to penetrate
*Cats have 2 gallbladder lobes

ABDOMINAL ORGANS
Normal Urinary bladder – anechoic once it is pure urine. 3 visible layers
-2 tiny bumps in caudal aspect of bladder = normal
*Bladder stones ; On x-ray not all stones are radio-opaque but on ultrasound you can see all
stones. The disadvantage is that you cannot see the entire penile urethra. Stone produces a clear
shadow so you know it is a stone and not a soft tissue mass.
-Transitional cell carcinoma – most common bladder mass
-Cranial to the bladder the uterus will bifurcate, so normally you may see 2 fluid filled structures
which would be the uterus.
*LIVER = portal vessels, hepatic arteries and hepatic veins
*SPLEEN vs LIVER: spleen is thin compared to liver which may occupy the entire screen.
Portal vessels may be used to tell liver from spleen. Blood vessels come in from periphery in
spleen whereas in liver they come in at one point and branch out.
*SMALL INTESTINES – hypoechoic mucosa
-gas in colon can block the ultrasound beam , less than 2mm in pigs
*PERITONEAL EFFUSION – pus or blood can cause echogenicity of fluid present. (will appear
hyperechoic).
*PERITONEAL MASS - cant tell if someone is cancerous based on looking at it, can only be
sure if you aspirate. But you can say that there is a high chance that it is cancer.
*LYMPH NODES – neoplasias will metastasize here first. If you pick up isolated round mass
that does not connect to any other structures/organ then it is a lymph node.
*ADRENAL GLAND – peanut shaped, run along with blood vessels. Can find the kidneys first
to then locate the adrenal gland.
*OVARY – tricky to find. Use kidneys as a landmark. Ovary should be caudal to kidney. Cystic
ovaries easy to pick up (hamsters, guinea pigs, cats, dogs).
*PANCREAS – use duodenum as landmark because the pancreas runs along duodenum. If the
pancreas is inflammed, the fat around it tends to look like a tumor (e.g acute pancreatitis picture)
*STOMACH – empty stomach should look like a “cut orange”
*LIVER – gall bladder on right side.
*CARDIO – know which probe to use and know how to make out each valve.
*If frequency is too high then you will lose vision
When showing images = Note number, echogenicity, demarcation
*Hepatic lipidosis – fat is hyperechoic