Ultrasound-guided fine needle aspiration in the diagnosis of peripheral nerve sheath tumors in 4 dogs

Case Report: A Novel Lateral Approach to the C7, C8, and T1 Intervertebral Foramina for Resection of Malignant Peripheral Nerve Sheath Neoplasia, Followed by Adjunctive Radiotherapy, in Three Dogs

This case report describes the diagnosis, management and outcome of three dogs with peripheral nerve sheath tumors (PNSTs) involving the brachial plexus, C7 (case 1), C8 (case 2), and C8 and T1 (case 3) spinal nerves and nerve roots with intrathoracic invasion. Surgical resection required thoracic limb amputation and removal of the first rib, facilitating a novel lateral approach to the spinal nerves and foramina in all cases. This was followed by hemilaminectomy and rhizotomy in cases 1 and 2. Adjunctive radiotherapy was then performed in all dogs. All three dogs regained a good quality of life in the short-term following surgery. Two were euthanased after 3 and 10 months, following detection of a pulmonary mass in one case and multiple thoracic and abdominal masses in the other. The third dog was alive and well at the time of writing (7 months post-surgery). This surgical approach facilitated good access and allowed gross neoplastic tissue to be resected. The ease of surgical access was dependent, to a degree, on the size of the patient. This surgical approach can be considered in cases of PNSTs involving the caudal cervical or cranial thoracic spinal nerves and nerve roots. Adjunctive radiotherapy should be considered as part of a multi-modal approach to these challenging tumors due to the difficulty of achieving clean margins, particularly proximally, even with optimal surgical access.

Maximum levels of cross-contamination for 24 antimicrobial active substances in non-target feed. Part 6: Macrolides: tilmicosin, tylosin and tylvalosin

The specific concentrations of tilmicosin, tylosin and tylvalosin in non-target feed for food-producing animals, below which there would not be an effect on the emergence of, and/or selection for, resistance in bacteria relevant for human and animal health, as well as the specific antimicrobial concentrations in feed which have an effect in terms of growth promotion/increased yield, were assessed by EFSA in collaboration with EMA. Details of the methodology used for this assessment, associated data gaps and uncertainties, are presented in a separate document. To address antimicrobial resistance, the Feed Antimicrobial Resistance Selection Concentration (FARSC) model developed specifically for the assessment was applied. However, due to the lack of data on the parameters required to calculate the FARSC, it was not possible to conclude the assessment until further experimental data become available. To address growth promotion, data from scientific publications obtained from an extensive literature review were used. Levels in feed that showed to have an effect on growth promotion/increased yield were reported for tilmicosin and tylosin, whilst for tylvalosin no suitable data for the assessment were available. It was recommended to carry out studies to generate the data that are required to fill the gaps which prevented the calculation of the FARSC for these three antimicrobials.

Natural sex steroids and their xenobiotic analogs in animal production: growth, carcass quality, pharmacokinetics, metabolism, mode of action, residues, methods, and epidemiology

Natural and xenobiotic compounds having sex-related actions have long been used for growth promotion and various changes in carcass quality in meat animals. The first compounds used were synthetic estrogens; however, later on a whole battery of compounds having androgenic, and progestogenic actions have also been involved. In surveying the effects of these compounds in meat-producing animals, it became clear that these drugs increase the growth rate of the treated animals and bring about changes in the carcass that are generally characterized by lower fat content and more lean mass. Extensive studies undertaken in various countries, including the European Economic Community (EEC), have shown that if used according to good husbandry practices, the meat from treated animals does not have excessive amounts of residues compared with the endogenous amount of steroid production in the animals in question and also in human beings. The banning of these compounds in the European community brought a new phenomenon of illegal or black market cocktails. These mixtures of anabolic steroids are injected into the body of the animals rather than implanted in the ears, which is the normal practice in countries where they have not yet been banned. Several screening and confirmatory methods are now available for monitoring programs. However, these programs need excessive resources in terms of manpower, funds, and proper legislation, which in underdeveloped countries is questionable, particularly in the absence of strong scientific evidence for the exercise.