We noticed Charlie having some trouble walking about two weeks ago, and the Saturday after Thanksgiving it got bad enough that we had to take him to the vet.  His back legs were working, but not well, and he was whimpering a bit as if in pain.  When that dog starts showing pain, you know there’s something wrong.  After x-rays of Charlie’s spine and a night of observation, we were referred to a specialist.

We went to the specialist on Tuesday of last week.  He did a myelogram, consulted with a radiologist, and diagnosed a ruptured disk or some other type of blockage that was preventing Charlie’s back legs from working fully.  He recommended surgery, as those kinds of injuries don’t typically fix themselves.  The surgery was yesterday (Monday).

Charlie came through the surgery fine.  He’s still at the vet, though, recovering.  Unfortunately, the doctor didn’t find what he was looking for:  no evidence of a ruptured disk or other type of injury to the spinal column that would cause the blockage.  He did, however, see some swelling in the area, which would present as a spinal injury in the myelogram.

The most likely diagnosis now is a fibrocartilaginous embolism (FCE):

FCE results when material from the nucleus pulposus (the gel-like material which acts as a force-absorbing cushion between two vertebrae) leaks into the arterial system and causes an embolism or plug in a blood vessel in the spinal cord. The condition is not degenerative, and therefore does not worsen. FCE is not painful for the pet, but some permanent nerve damage is likely. Roughly half of all patients diagnosed with FCE will recover sufficient use of their limbs.

Searching for “fce dogs” on the Internet will bring up some frightening pages, many of which indicate that the neurological damage is permanent.  After last night’s reading, I was resigned to Charlie being partially paralyzed for the rest of his life.  But after talking with the doctor today and reading some case studies, I’m much more hopeful.  The doctor, based on his experience with about 200 FCE cases, says that there’s a 60 to 70 percent chance that Charlie will recover fully.

It’s unfortunate that he had to go through what turned out to be an unnecessary surgery, but all the tests indicated that the surgery was the proper course of action.  Charlie’s pretty miserable right now, but he’s still relatively young (7 years old), and very strong.  I expect he’ll be recovered from the surgery very quickly, and then we can see about getting some of his mobility back.