Fine-needle aspiration in the diagnosis of equine skin disease and the epidemiology of equine skin cytology submissions in a western Canadian diagnostic laboratory.
Abstract: Fine-needle aspiration (FNA) is commonly used to diagnose skin disease in companion animals, but its use in horses appears to be infrequent. Equine veterinarians in western Canada were surveyed to determine their opinions about FNA and 15 years of diagnostic submissions were used to compare the perceived to actual value of FNA in the diagnosis of skin disease in horses. Practitioners viewed FNA as quick, easy, economical, and minimally invasive. However, most veterinarians rarely chose to use FNA due to a perception that sample quality and diagnostic yield were poor and there was a narrow range of diseases the technique could diagnose. Analysis of the FNA cytology samples from a veterinary diagnostic laboratory showed a wide variety of equine skin disease conditions, but the frequency of non-diagnostic results was significantly higher in equine submissions compared to those from dogs and cats. L’aspiration à l’aiguille est communément utilisée pour diagnostiquer les maladies de la peau chez les animaux de compagnie, mais son utilisation semble peu commune chez les chevaux. On a effectué un sondage auprès des vétérinaires équins de l’Ouest canadien afin de déterminer leurs opinions à propos de l’aspiration à l’aiguille et on a utilisé 15 années de soumissions diagnostiques pour comparer la valeur perçue et réelle de l’aspiration à l’aiguille pour le diagnostic des maladies de la peau chez les chevaux.Les praticiens considèrent l’aspiration par aiguille comme une méthode rapide, facile, économique et minimalement invasive. Cependant, la plupart des vétérinaires choisissent rarement l’aspiration à l’aiguille en raison de la perception que la qualité de l’échantillon et les résultats diagnostiques sont mauvais et que la technique peut diagnostiquer un nombre limité de maladies.L’analyse des échantillons de cytologie de l’aspiration à l’aiguille provenant d’un laboratoire de diagnostic vétérinaire a montré un vaste éventail d’affections de la peau équines, mais la fréquence des résultats non diagnostiques était significativement supérieure dans les soumissions équines comparativement à celles provenant de chiens et chats.(Traduit par Isabelle Vallières).
Publication Date: 2016-06-02 PubMed ID: 27247463PubMed Central: PMC4866668
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- Journal Article
Summary
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This study aims to evaluate the perception and actual use of fine-needle aspiration (FNA) in diagnosing skin diseases in horses by equine veterinarians in western Canada. Although FNA is deemed efficient and minimally invasive, it is infrequent in use primarily due to perceived poor sample quality and narrow diagnostic range. The actual value of FNA, analyzed using 15 years of diagnostic submissions, presents a higher rate of non-diagnostic results in horses compared to cats and dogs.
Practitioner’s Perception of Fine-Needle Aspiration (FNA)
- The research surveys equine veterinarians in western Canada about FNA, a common method used to diagnose skin disease in companion animals.
- Most veterinarians perceive FNA as a quick, straightforward, cost-effective, and minimally invasive method of diagnosing skin ailments.
- Despite these advantages, majority of practitioners seldom use FNA. The low usage is attributed to the presumption of poor sample quality and limited diagnostic yield.
- There is a common belief among veterinarians that FNA can only diagnose a limited range of diseases, affecting its widespread application.
Analysis of FNA in Diagnosing Equine Skin Diseases
- The study involves a comparative analysis of the perceived and actual value of FNA in diagnosing skin diseases in horses using 15 years of diagnostic submissions in a veterinary diagnostic laboratory.
- The results from FNA cytology samples show diverse equine skin disease conditions, contradicting the perception that the technique can diagnose only a limited range of diseases.
- However, the frequency of non-diagnostic results is significantly higher in equine submissions compared to those from dogs and cats.
- This higher propensity for non-diagnostic results in horses underlines a potential disadvantage of the FNA method in diagnosing equine skin diseases.
Cite This Article
APA
Zachar EK, Burgess HJ, Wobeser BK.
(2016).
Fine-needle aspiration in the diagnosis of equine skin disease and the epidemiology of equine skin cytology submissions in a western Canadian diagnostic laboratory.
Can Vet J, 57(6), 629-634.
Publication
Researcher Affiliations
- Department of Veterinary Pathology, Western College of Veterinary Medicine, 52 Campus Drive, Saskatoon, Saskatchewan S7N 5B4.
- Department of Veterinary Pathology, Western College of Veterinary Medicine, 52 Campus Drive, Saskatoon, Saskatchewan S7N 5B4.
- Department of Veterinary Pathology, Western College of Veterinary Medicine, 52 Campus Drive, Saskatoon, Saskatchewan S7N 5B4.
MeSH Terms
- Animals
- Biopsy, Fine-Needle / statistics & numerical data
- Biopsy, Fine-Needle / veterinary
- Canada
- Horse Diseases / pathology
- Horses
- Humans
- Skin Diseases / pathology
- Skin Diseases / veterinary
- Surveys and Questionnaires
- Veterinary Medicine / trends
References
This article includes 8 references
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