Philippine E-Journals

Contrast Ultrasonography of the Liver and Spleen in Captive Bengal Tigers (Panthera tigris tigris)

Jezie A. Acorda

Discipline: Veterinary Medicine, Animal Science

 

Abstract:

Diagnostic ultrasound of the liver and spleen was conducted in seven (7) apparently healthy Bengal tigers (Panthera tigris tigris), five females and two males, 5 months to 6 years old, using an ultrasound machine equipped with a 3.5 MHz convex array transducer. The ultrasound features of the hepatic and splenic parenchyma were compared. Histogram analysis of the ultrasonograms was conducted and echo mean values of the parenchyma of liver and spleen were obtained. The hepatic parenchyma was observed to be homogenously hypoechoic. The hepatic veins had anechoic lumen and hypoechoic walls while the portal veins had anechoic lumen and hyperechoic walls. The gall bladder was seen as a rounded structure with anechoic lumen and either hypoechoic or hyperechoic walls. The splenic parenchyma was uniformly hypoechoic and was seen to be more echogenic than the hepatic parenchyma. The hepatic parenchyma had a coarse appearance while the splenic parenchyma was finely granular. At 5 mos and 11 mos of age, the echo mean values of the hepatic and splenic parenchyma of the tigers were similar. At older ages, the splenic parenchyma had slightly higher echo mean values than the hepatic parenchyma. The comparative ultrasound features of the liver and spleen can be used as reference for identifying parenchymal lesions of these organs in tigers.