Publication
IMAGING DIAGNOSIS-ULTRASOUND UNCOMMON FEATURES OF AN ABDOMINAL GOSSYPIBOMA IN A DOG.
Louvet Arnaud, Duconseille Anne-Carole
# Abdominal Gossypiboma in a Dog
This case report describes an incidental abdominal mass discovered via ultrasound in a 12-year-old female dog. The lesion appeared as a well-delineated, irregular, heterogeneous mass embedded in the omentum, but notably lacked the characteristic distal acoustic shadowing typically associated with such foreign bodies. Transcutaneous ultrasound-guided biopsy was nonconclusive and initially suggested the possibility of neoplasia, complicating diagnosis.
Surgical exploration ultimately revealed the mass to contain multiple retained surgical sponges. The authors document this as the first published case of a gossypiboma (surgical sponge retained within the body) presenting without typical acoustic shadowing on ultrasonography. This unusual imaging presentation expands the known sonographic features of gossypibomas in veterinary medicine and highlights the diagnostic challenge these lesions may pose, as imaging alone may not reliably identify retained surgical materials and differentiate them from neoplastic processes.
Abstract
An abdominal mass was incidentally detected in a 12-year-old, neutered female, crossed breed dog. Abdominal ultrasonographic examination showed a well-delineated, irregular, heterogeneous mass that did not generate any distal acoustic shadowing. Transcutaneous US-guided biopsy of the mass were nonconclusive but raised the possibility of neoplasia. Surgery discovered a mass embedded in the omentum and a large quantity of surgical sponges were identified in cut section. To the authors' knowledge, this represents the first published case of gossypiboma casting no characteristic distal acoustic shadowing.