Hérnia diafragmática em gatos domésticos: morfologia do diafragma e casuística do Hospital Veterinário Prof. Ivon Macêdo Tabosa (HVU) da Universidade Federal de Campina Grande, Campus Patos.

Abstract

The feline diaphragm is a musculotendinous structure that is important in the process of inspiration and expiration and that subdivides the thoracic and abdominal cavities. Diaphragmatic hernia occurs when abdominal organs are displaced toward the thoracic cavity, either due to congenital communications or ruptures caused by traumatic accidents, with traumatic hernia being the most common form. Congenital hernias are subclassified according to the malformation, and can be peritoneopericardial, pleuroperitoneal, and hiatal. In this study, the morphological measurement of the feline diaphragm was performed in ten cadavers, with emphasis on the topographic location of the aortic hiatus, esophageal hiatus, and caudal vena cava foramen, definition of the lumbar, costal, and sternal insertions, and characterization of the intercostal spaces. In addition, an evaluation was carried out of the clinical cases that were treated and diagnosed with diaphragmatic hernia at the Prof. Ivon Macêdo Tabosa University Veterinary Hospital (HVU) between 2019 and 2023, to collect data such as age, sex, level of access to the street, clinical signs, imaging findings and cause of herniation. As a result, twenty-seven cases of diaphragmatic hernia were identified, of which twenty-four had a traumatic origin and three were congenital. The main epidemiological aspects were characterized as being males, on average three years old, semi-domiciled, visits from car accidents, who underwent diaphragmatic hernia repair as the surgical procedure of choice.