BUSTED!Fracture repair in dogs and cats

Board certified veterinary surgeons at the Animal Medical Center care for pets with broken bones every day. They use a variety of methods to repair fractures and return pets to full function. This blog will show some of their innovative approaches to fracture repair.

Treatment: splint

• This pup’s fracture was caused by an accidental kick. She needed only a splint to fix the fracture because the bones were well aligned.

Treatment: pins

• X marks the spot of this fracture. In this dog, rescued from the city shelter, AMC surgeons repaired the thigh bone near the knee using two pins. The pins were removed when the fracture was healed.

Treatment: plate and screws

• This young terrier took a bad fall and broke her wrist. The plate holds the fractured wrist bones to her “ring finger.”

Treatment: plate and screws

• This 12-hole plate and screw repair has been applied to a fractured hock or tarsus, which is analogous to our heel. AMC to the Rescue funded her care.

Treatment: pins, plates, screws

• This complicated elbow fracture occurred when this Pug puppy was inadvertently dropped. Note the tiny screw holding the point of his elbow back in place.

Treatment: 2 plates and a rod

• An automobile accident caused fractures in this dog’s pelvis and femur (thigh bone). She needed a rod and a plate to repair the femur, but only a plate to repair the pelvis. AMC to the Rescue funded her care.

High rise fracture

• This kitten fell from a 4th floor window and sustained a comminuted fracture (multiple pieces of bone) of the upper arm, or radius.

Treatment: Kirschner-Ehmer apparatus• For sure this fracture repair

would set off any metal detector. The contraption used to fix the fractured humerus involves slender pins placed into the bone and held in place by an external device known as a Kirschner-Ehmer apparatus. The K-E will be removed when the fracture is healed.

Treatment: pins and medical cement

• This kitten weighed barely 2 pounds and needed a custom device to repair the damage from an automobile accident. Four pins and medical cement were used to create her fracture repair device. AMC to the Rescue funded her care.

Preventing fractures

• While skillful AMC surgeons returned these pets to full function, we would rather not see pets with serious injuries.

Preventing fractures• Keep cats indoors.• Keep dogs on a leash.• Install window screens to

prevent pets from falling.• Hold wiggly pets tightly

to prevent them from falling.

Remember: If your pet is injured, AMC’s ER is open 24/7.