Treatment of an Antebrachial Deformity Using a Three-Dimensional Printing Model in a Dog

Abstract

An eight-month-old spayed female Italian greyhound with a body weight of 4.6 kg was referred to our hospital for examination due to lameness in the right forelimb. An x-ray and computed tomography showed severe deformity of the right radius and ulna. The deformity of the right forelimb was determined to have been caused by a past radioulnar fracture. The degree of deformity was severe and complex. It was difficult to locate an accurate landmark for corrective osteotomy using conventional computed images, which were predicted to lead to malalignment. We constructed 3D printed models from computed tomography, performed a simulated operation, and made an implant through this method. After the simulated operation, a good prognosis for correction was confirmed and we actually performed the operation. After the surgery, the lameness was resolved and at the time of this writing, the dog is clinically normal with completely healed bones.