Sedation for OFA x-rays?

[S1969]

Hi Everyone,
I’m just curious if the vet techs and/or vet savvy members can tell me what is typical for conducting OFA xrays?

My vet would use Dexdomitor with a reversal, but my breeder knows another vet that does the xrays with no sedation (her preference). Obviously no sedation is safer than any type of sedation, but I also don’t want to drive 4 hours only to find out my dog won’t lay still enough for a good xray and they sedate him anyway.

I trust my vet a LOT. But I am also trying to consider my breeder’s feelings on this as well, even though he’s mine, he’ll always be her baby too.

Does anyone know if Dexdomitor is typical? Or is there something else? My vet said they use only enough to get the xray, and then reverse it. Are there any side effects or dangers I should worry about?

Thank you!

[crosscreeksh]

Sorry - don’t know what OFA stands for. When I took my Boerboel (140 pounds) for a suspected cruciate ligament rupture the vet insisted on full anesthesia. Lots of $$$, time and two 70 mile round trips. X-ray quality was fine. Took him to my regular vet for many more films…did him standing like a horse, no meds, x-rays were perfect, no blurring. Unless the dog is a jerk and depending on the body part x-rayed, I think the meds are just another charge and an added risk to the dog. Maybe easier for all concerned, but still a risk. JMO.

[anel]

Sedation is not required but is desired. Some people believe that doing the OFA films without sedation will make the hip look “tighter” than it acutally is in real life. This is a theory and not proven. You really do need to roatate the hip inward to make quality films for an OFA exam. This is very difficult and likley painful without sedation.

It is also safer for the staff holding for the radiograph to use sedation (less radiation exposure for the staff as they make several radiographs a day). The radiograph quality will likely be better as well. All dogs are different and some will be easier to image awake when compared to others.

[Bluey]

The way they have to position a dog for ideal OFA pictures makes many dogs too uncomfortable to stay in that position quiet enough and then the pictures are not the quality OFA requires for elbows and hips.

You can try to do it without any kind of medication on board, but the pictures have to be just right, or the dog will have to be sedated anyway to achieve those pictures.

[BuddyRoo]

Sedation can be very helpful for getting good rads on the first try.

As others mentioned, many dogs are not particularly amenable to being held in the positions they need to be held for the rads.

(not because it hurts them but because it’s a prone position to them and sitting still is hard!)

[cute_lil_fancy_pants]

I am surprised OFA would accept rads on a non-sedated dog, but I guess there would be no way to prove whether the dog was sedated or not. You need sufficient sedation in order to achieve the muscle relaxation needed to pull and rotate the hip joints appropriately. But I’m sure there are plenty of vets who make their techs use “brutathaine”.

[Bluey]

One of the positions that dogs really are not happy in is laying flat on their backs, their hind legs hyper stretched way out there and at a certain angle, so the hip joint interior is clearly visible.

That one, they told me, is the hardest on the dogs and why they generally use something to keep them happy during all that.

[Houndhill]

I think for the dog’s sake, i think it is better to sedate, although I know that is always a worry. I have had OFAs done without sedation, and have been present, and the dogs were pretty uncomfortable. My vets now use something almost instantly reversible (well 5-10 minutes) plus have a hydraulic lift table that the dogs walk onto, get the shot, crumple down, and the table is raised then wheeled into xray and the dog is slid onto the table. Great for everyone when the dog weighs 150-200 pounds. Hard to lift that big and ungainly weight up onto a table, even with two people.

Hint…if it is a deep chested breed, it is difficult for them to stay balanced on their back, so the vet (greyhound person) has sort of a trough that is padded that supports the ribcage so it doesn’t fall from side to side.

When done, the process is reversed…so much easier and less stressful for all concerned. I will never go back to unsedated OFA hips and elbows and the OFA doesn’t like them either. Much better for dog, techs, vet and owner to do the quickly reversible light sedation IMO.

[threedogpack]

unless I had a medical reason not to sedate, I’d sedate. And if I had a medical reason to question sedation…I would not be doing OFA to begin with.

[Marshfield]

Ditto what the others have said. I PennHip my own dogs, but even with my own dogs who trust me I’d be unlikely to get an OFA hip radiograph awake. Their muscles are so strong that getting enough internal rotation of the knees on an awake dog is tough. The film series when you’re looking for a CCL tear or getting radiographs on a known rupture in anticipation of surgery (TPLO or TTA) includes the OFA hip view, hence why we typically sedate for those images as well. The other two views I could do awake.

[S1969]

Thanks everyone!

OFA stands for Orthopedic Foundation for Animals (www.offa.org) - which is an organization that will grade the health of your dog’s hips (to determine potential for dysplasia) prior to breeding.

For some reason I always assumed they took the pictures prone on their belly, with the hips out in “frog position”…which is a normal position for my dog, so it seemed possible without sedation. But on his back…hmmm…not seeing that one so much. He’s sort of a whirling dervish to begin with…I really don’t want a wrestling match for xrays.

The same vet did my other dog a decade ago and got great xrays. I hate the idea of not sedating and having to get multiple xrays, or, trying to get xrays without sedation and having to sedate anyway.

I have no reason to be concerned about sedation, except that my breeder seems to know some dog, somewhere, that had a problem. But I suppose when you show/breed dogs for 30 years and know a million people who also show & breed, someone probably has a horror story. Just like everything else.

Thanks for your thoughts - I think I will probably follow my own vet’s protocol and trust him. He knows my dog’s health and I also know that he’s a minimal med kind of guy. If it only takes a little bit, that’s all he’ll use.

[Pancakes]

For good radiographs, dexdomitor is pretty standard (mixed with an opioid like butorphanol, buprenorphine, or hydromorphone). It’s great because it’s reversible – antisedan counteracts its effects within 10-15 minutes.

I’d take films WITH sedation. It helps you get proper positioning.

[animaldoc]

Much better films and much easier on everyone (your dog and your vet’s staff) to use sedation.

[S1969]

Thanks for the replies, it makes me feel much better.

I wonder if I should have anything else done at the same time since he’ll be under sedation already. Or…I suppose if the hips don’t come back ok I wouldn’t breed him anyway…maybe I should wait.

Maybe the vet will give me a multiple xray discount? I guess I should ask my breeder and vet what they recommend about patellas and elbows too…his sire had them all done on the same day so they must have assumed they would all be good.

[Bluey]

You could have teeth cleaned and if nails need it also …
I know our vets sometimes will offer that on some dogs that need that tended to, while they are under for something other.

[Hannahsmom]

My two were both done without sedation. I was right there, they are little dogs, the breeders were there. You CAN get good xrays without sedation.

[S1969]

[QUOTE=Hannahsmom;6212691]
My two were both done without sedation. I was right there, they are little dogs, the breeders were there. You CAN get good xrays without sedation.[/QUOTE]

Oh, I’m not saying you can’t get good xrays without it - I know my breeder has had some dogs done w/o and they were fine. My issue is that I would have to go somewhere other than the vet I have used for 15 years. At least, my vet’s normal protocol is to sedate as necessary, but probably if I insisted, he would give it a try. I just don’t want to drive 4 hours to another vet (that I’ve never met) on the recommendation of my breeder only because they will do it without sedation. Because I know that if they can’t do it w/o sedation they will have to sedate anyway.

I have had a lot of trouble getting my dog to tolerate stretching as per his chiropractor’s advice. He’s good for a while, then decides it’s a really fun game to wrestle, play bite and squirm. He’s not a very serious guy. I have a gut feeling that an xray might be very similar…

[Pancakes]

[QUOTE=S1969;6212026]
Thanks for the replies, it makes me feel much better.

I wonder if I should have anything else done at the same time since he’ll be under sedation already. Or…I suppose if the hips don’t come back ok I wouldn’t breed him anyway…maybe I should wait.

Maybe the vet will give me a multiple xray discount? I guess I should ask my breeder and vet what they recommend about patellas and elbows too…his sire had them all done on the same day so they must have assumed they would all be good.[/QUOTE]

Usually the price for additional radiographs are less than the initial set (of 2, most often). It makes sense to get elbows and patellas radiographed at the same time.

If you’re really concerned about breeding, ask your vet about having PennHip films taken. Those have to be done under sedation, but the studies show that they offer a better predictive value to hip dysfunction.

[CdnRider]

I am glad most people have their pets sedated for OFAs. You have no idea how much easier xrays with sedation is; on the techs. Yes, many xrays can be done without any sedation (although OFAs aren’t one of them) but how much it helps when pets are sedated. The clinic I work at has instuted new prices to make it more finacially feasible for clients to have their pets sedated for rads (not all, mind you) but hips/stifles/shoulders/elbows/cervical spine/skull - it makes it so much easier. And I’ve been doing rads for 8 years now; I don’t know how many actual views that would entail but it is a significant number and any way to reduce the number of xrays I have to take, well, I appreciate it!!

[Pancakes]

[QUOTE=CdnRider;6212793]
I am glad most people have their pets sedated for OFAs. You have no idea how much easier xrays with sedation is; on the techs. Yes, many xrays can be done without any sedation (although OFAs aren’t one of them) but how much it helps when pets are sedated. The clinic I work at has instuted new prices to make it more finacially feasible for clients to have their pets sedated for rads (not all, mind you) but hips/stifles/shoulders/elbows/cervical spine/skull - it makes it so much easier. And I’ve been doing rads for 8 years now; I don’t know how many actual views that would entail but it is a significant number and any way to reduce the number of xrays I have to take, well, I appreciate it!![/QUOTE]

Good point! Proper sedation reduces the number of radiographs taken, which reduces the exposure of radiation to the pet and the techs. And in many cases, the technicians can use sandbags and foam wedges to position a sedated dog (or cat) so that they don’t have to hold the pet at all. So much safer for everyone…