Over the last decade, magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and multidetector computed tomography (MDCT) have revolutionized diagnostic potentialities in small animal practice, providing adequate assessment of spinal diseases at levels almost comparable to that achieved in human radiology. The T2-weighted MRI images are extremely sensitive to intramedullary parenchymal disorders, while balanced steady-state free precession sequences provide high-quality myelographic images of the spine without the need of intrathecal contrast medium administration. Multidetector computed tomography, with its near-isotropic spatial resolution and multiplanar reformatting of the acquired datasets, provides exquisite stratigraphic details of the spinal cord and the epidural space, facilitating the detection of compressive pathologies without the need of subarachnoid opacification. Nowadays, MDCT and LF-MRI have become fairly standard and available in academic institutions and private veterinary facilities, appearing to be valuable, complementary, and non-invasive diagnostic tools for imaging the spine. In this scenario, the usefulness of computed tomographic myelography should be reconsidered in the light of its invasiveness and actual diagnostic advantages compared to MRI and unenhanced MDCT for the assessment of compressive and non-compressive spinal diseases in small animals.
Key words: cat, computed tomographic myelography; dog; magnetic resonance imaging; multidetector computed tomography; spinal cord.
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