Burst blood vessel ?

rayjones
Guest

Burst blood vessel ? Dec 11, 2011 20:28:13 GMT 10

Post by rayjones on Dec 11, 2011 20:28:13 GMT 10

Tom,
I ran a dog last night and he has sustained a suspected burst blood vessel,he was badly bumped at the first bend (which looked likely on the card) and ran ok after that,on examination after the race his right forelimb was swelling noticeably from approx an inch below the elbow to about two inches above the stopper,the dog was not in any pain or distress,I had the vet (non greyhound) take a look at him and she thought it was a burst blood vessel caused by the collision in the race,she put a compression bandage from the elbow to the wrist and told me to take it off in a few hours,I took off the bandage but a small amount of blood where the skin had popped was on the bandage,the wound is very small about two inches above the stopper,it did not bleed after.The next morning the swelling was a little bit more and a blood blister about the size of a pea has formed just above the stopper.I have not come across an injury like this before and would welcome yours,and others,comments.Do you think it is a burst blood vessel and what is the likely outcome for the dog ?
Thanks
Ray Jones

Tom Meulman
Administrator

Posts: 1,190

Burst blood vessel ? Dec 11, 2011 20:48:30 GMT 10

Post by Tom Meulman on Dec 11, 2011 20:48:30 GMT 10

Hi Ray,

Mate it’s just about impossible to provide any real input without being to be able to carefully examine the greyhound.

However, usually when there is a severely damaged blood vessel, the effect is more confined to a specific area rather than causing swelling to most of the lower limb.

To me it sounds more like muscle damage and severe bruising, as this type of injury involves fluid rather than whole blood and therefore affects a larger area.

The only thing you can do as is usually best in the first instance, and that is cold compress the limb four times daily to reduce the swelling, and see what eventuates after that.

Let me know how it develops.

Cheers,
Tom

Everything that happens to a greyhound can only happen because of an action or inaction by its carer, so don’t blame the greyhound when it all goes wrong.

rayjones Guest	Burst blood vessel ? Dec 11, 2011 22:19:16 GMT 10 Select Post Deselect Post Link to Post Back to Top Post by rayjones on Dec 11, 2011 22:19:16 GMT 10 Tom, Thanks for you reply,I am pretty confident there is no shoulder damage so do you think the actual muscle in the foreleg could be damaged ? I have not messed the dog around much TBH bar for applying cold pack treatment. Cheers Ray.

Tom Meulman
Administrator

Posts: 1,190

Burst blood vessel ? Dec 12, 2011 6:45:29 GMT 10

Post by Tom Meulman on Dec 12, 2011 6:45:29 GMT 10

Hi Ray,

The muscle tissue that I believe has been damaged is the Flexor Carpi Ulnaris, with possibly some damage to the Perforatus.

The Flexor Carpi Ulnaris connects from just below the elbow to the top of the stopper bone, flexes the wrist and limits how far the wrist can bend forward.

As you can imagine when a greyhound is negotiating a turn at some point in time all of the greyhounds weight, plus the inertia created by driving around the turn is supported by that muscle of the one front leg, and if at that moment the dog is pushed off the turn by being hit by another greyhound, the tension on that individual muscle is incredible.

This may rupture the muscle fibres, and in most instances may create additional damage just at the area where the muscle narrows and becomes the flexor tendon. Or in a worst case scenario the Flexor tendon may partially tear off the stopper bone taking a bit of bone with it.

If the damage is limited to the Flexor muscle with no stopper bone damage, the treatment is the same as for any other muscle damage, and that is reduce the swelling and inflammation as quickly as possible to limit the formation of scar tissue. Then treat with ultrasound, and massage with preferably something like Lasonil cream or Hirudoid cream, as again this should limit scar tissue.

Once the tissue is back to normal it may need injecting with a low level sclerosing agent only in those areas where muscle weakness is detected, and then the follow up treatment consists of contracting the muscle with a muscle contracting device, and deep massaging using a mild heat producing liniment such as iodised oil.

Cheers,
Tom

Everything that happens to a greyhound can only happen because of an action or inaction by its carer, so don’t blame the greyhound when it all goes wrong.

rayjones Guest	Burst blood vessel ? Dec 12, 2011 9:52:13 GMT 10 Select Post Deselect Post Link to Post Back to Top Post by rayjones on Dec 12, 2011 9:52:13 GMT 10 Tom, Thanks for the reply,I have got to hope for just muscle damage then,I will let you know the outcome. Cheers Ray.

rayjones Guest	Burst blood vessel ? Dec 13, 2011 8:51:07 GMT 10 Select Post Deselect Post Link to Post Back to Top Post by rayjones on Dec 13, 2011 8:51:07 GMT 10 Hi Tom, Just an update,took the dog to a greyhound vet and after a good examination he confirmed that he had suffered a burst blood vessel,the dog should be ok within a month or so.Thanks for your time. Ray Jones

Post by rayjones on Dec 11, 2011 20:28:13 GMT 10

Post by Tom Meulman on Dec 11, 2011 20:48:30 GMT 10

Post by rayjones on Dec 11, 2011 22:19:16 GMT 10

Post by Tom Meulman on Dec 12, 2011 6:45:29 GMT 10

Post by rayjones on Dec 12, 2011 9:52:13 GMT 10

Post by rayjones on Dec 13, 2011 8:51:07 GMT 10