Imaging diagnosis - Complex intrahepatic portosystemic shunt in a dog

Abstract

An unusual form of congenital intrahepatic portosystemic shunt was identified in a 31/2-month-old female Labrador Retriever with neurologic signs. Ultrasonography and contrast-enhanced computed tomography were used to characterize the shunt morphology. An unusual, looping right-divisional shunt connected back to the portal vein that formed an ampula in the right-central portion of the liver. An irregularly shaped window-like opening connected the combined right-divisional loop and aneurysmal portal vein, and the caudal vena cava, while this vascular pool gradually fused more cranially. Imaging features of this complex vascular anomaly, which has not been previously reported, are presented. © Copyright 2008 by the American College of Veterinary Radiology.