Background: Gall bladder mucoceles (GBM) are a leading cause of biliary disease in dogs with several breeds, including the Shetland Sheepdog, American Cocker Spaniel, Chihuahua, Pomeranian, and Miniature Schnauzer apparently predisposed.
Objective: To determine risk factors, clinical features, and response to treatment of GBM in Border terriers (BT).
Animals: Medical records of 99 dogs (including 51 BT) with an ultrasonographic (±histopathologic) diagnosis of GBM from three referral centers in the United Kingdom were collected. A control group of 87 similar-aged BT with no ultrasonographic evidence of gall bladder disease was selected for comparison.
Method: Retrospective case-control study. Odds ratios were calculated to establish breed predisposition. Signalment, presence of endocrine disease, clinicopathologic results, and outcome were compared between the BT, other breeds, and control BTs.
Results: The odds of identifying a GBM in a BT in this hospital population was 85 times that of all other breeds (95% confidence interval 56.9-126.8). BT had similar clinical signs and clinicopathologic changes to other breeds with GBM. There was no evidence that endocrinopathies were associated with GBM in BT.
Clinical significance: A robust breed predisposition to GBM is established for the BT.
Keywords: biliary disease; cholecystectomy; extrahepatic biliary tract obstruction; hypercholesterolemia; liver.
© 2018 The Authors. Journal of Veterinary Internal Medicine published by Wiley Periodicals, Inc. on behalf of the American College of Veterinary Internal Medicine.