Cruciate Ligament Rupture and Cruciate Disease
Rupture of the cruciate (mainly the cranial one as there are two that cross each other) ligament in the stifle (knee) is possibly the most common orthopaedic injury to the young adult dog.
A common presentation is the dog that exhibits sudden lameness especially when running about, on a walk. Just as a football player puts extra strain on his knee ligament when twisting and turning so does a dog. I have seen cats with ruptured cruciate ligaments but it is less clear how the injury occurs.
In some breeds of dog the cruciate ligament weakens with age and both legs can be affected.
At the shelter we regularly see dogs with this condition and the injury may not have been treated. The unstable joint creates unnatural wear on the cartilage causing arthritis and damage to the joint capsule leads to fibrosis, thickening and stiffness.
There are a number of different surgical techniques for repair of the cruciate ligament and it is often difficult to decide which is best for any particular dog. The Staffordshire Bull Terrier has a different shaped leg compared with the Border Collie.
The specialist referral centres are using a technique called to Tibial Plateau Levelling (TPLO). This involves intricate bone surgery with very accurate repair and specialist equipment. In older dogs at the shelter we use a special nylon figure of eight repair that is stitched across the knee joint to stabilise it, reduce the plane and arthritis. Unfortunately the nylon can stretch over the years or even break.
The textbooks suggest avoiding surgery in the smaller dog but I looked after two Jack Russell Terrier sisters called Tilly and Maisie. Tilly ruptured a cruciate whilst on holiday in Scotland. I followed the standard advice and avoided surgery but after a year when Tilly went back to Scotland she could not walk as far up the Glen as Maisie. Unfortunately Maisie then a ruptured her cruciate as well. The owners decided we should operate. Maise recovered and could still walk further than Tilly so we decided to repair Tilly's leg as well. I do not know how many peaks they have conquered now.