Henry is an adorable 11-month-old Hungarian Vizsla who presented to North Shore Veterinary Specialist Centre for investigation of a swelling behind his right lower jaw.
Henry’s owners first noticed the swelling in December 2021 and Henry’s local vet had been treating it with antibiotics. Henry had been seen shaking his head for a few days, and the swelling had continued to grow.
Dr Alastair Franklin thoroughly examined Henry, documenting a 10x6cm firm mass with considerable local lip and face swelling. Henry underwent a CT scan to further investigate the nature of the mass, performed by our in-house radiographer.
As surgical exploration would most likely be required, Dr Franklin needed the CT scan to show the structures close to the mass, as many important blood vessels and structures are located near this area.
The CT scan revealed a fluid filled structure consistent with an abscess (marked with red arrows in CT image).
Abscesses often form after a penetrating stick injury or migrating foreign body; the green arrow in the CT image points to a grass seed.
Grass seeds are a common problem as they can easily brush off the tops of long grass stems and their arrowhead shape allows them to penetrate body tissue. In Henry’s case, the body’s reaction to the grass seed then caused an abscess to form.
The abscess was surgically explored and drained, revealing the grass seed culprit.
Henry had a drain in place for a few days after the operation and was prescribed some antibiotics.
It’s now been a few weeks since Henry’s surgery at North Shore Veterinary Specialist Centre and his owners report Henry is bright and bouncy at home and back his exuberant self. We wish Henry and his family all the very best.
Find out more about our CT and Diagnostic Imaging services here.
