Diagnose This SQ Mass
Test your knowledge with the March 2018 Brain Teaser
March 1, 2018
By Phil Zeltzman, DVM, DACVS, CVJ, Certified Fear Free
Answers:
- Actinomyces should make you think of a grass awn or foxtail foreign body.
- Excision of the mass is recommended. Postop, incision of the mass revealed small greenish plant debris. The pathologist therefore was able to confirm the suspicion of an abscess due to a foxtail.
- Foxtails are typically inhaled, especially in hunting dogs. They can then migrate through soft tissues to a local area (such as in this patient) or to great distances, including the abdomen.
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