Post-Mortem Computed Tomography Pulmonary Findings in Harbor Porpoises ( Phocoena phocoena )

• Published in: Animals
• Main Authors: Nienke W. Kuijpers, Linde van Schalkwijk, Lonneke L. IJsseldijk, Dorien S. Willems, Stefanie Veraa
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: English
• Published: MDPI AG 2022
• Subjects: cetacean; virtopsy; necropsy; pulmonary pathology; decomposition; Veterinary medicine; SF600-1100; Zoology; QL1-991; Phocoena phocoena
• Online Access: https://doi.org/10.3390/ani12111454; https://doaj.org/article/0a834bf2920b4f41816da0b7f89c34c6

The application of whole-body post-mortem computed tomography (PMCT) in veterinary and wildlife post-mortem research programs is advancing. A high incidence of pulmonary pathology is reported in the harbor porpoise ( Phocoena phocoena ). In this study, the value of PMCT focused on pulmonary assessment is evaluated. The objectives of this study were to describe pulmonary changes as well as autolytic features detected by PMCT examination and to compare those findings with conventional necropsy. Retrospective evaluation of whole-body PMCT images of 46 relatively fresh harbor porpoises and corresponding conventional necropsy reports was carried out, with a special focus on the respiratory tract. Common pulmonary PMCT findings included: moderate (24/46) to severe (19/46) increased pulmonary soft tissue attenuation, severe parasite burden (17/46), bronchial wall thickening (30/46), and mild autolysis (26/46). Compared to conventional necropsy, PMCT more frequently identified pneumothorax (5/46 vs. none), tracheal content (26/46 vs. 7/46), and macroscopic pulmonary mineralization (23/46 vs. 11/46), and provided more information of the distribution of pulmonary changes. These results indicate that PMCT adds information on pulmonary assessment and is a promising complementary technique for necropsy, despite the frequent presence of mild autolytic features.