Ovarian Cysts in a Female Guinea Pig

🩺 Ovarian cysts are incredibly common in guinea pigs, with a reported prevalence of 58-100%. They typically affect older females, regardless of reproductive history. In this case, the diagnosis was clear based on the clinical signs and imaging findings.

🐹 Meet our patient: a 4-year-old intact female guinea pig who presented with bilateral non-pruritic flank alopecia, abdominal discomfort, and hyperkeratotic nipples. Appetite, urination, and defecation were all normal. Blood work and skin scrape? Unremarkable. But abdominal ultrasound revealed the culprit: ovarian cysts.

🩺 An ovariohysterectomy (OVH) was performed, which is the definitive treatment for ovarian cysts, particularly when concurrent uterine changes or masses are present (as they were in this patient). Surgery can be challenging in guinea pigs, especially when cysts are large, but it remains the gold standard for both serous (non-functional) and follicular (hormone-producing) cysts.

🏥 While serous cysts tend to grow silently until they compress abdominal organs, follicular cysts can cause hormonal disruptions, resulting in flank alopecia and mammary hyperkeratosis. Both types can lead to discomfort, anorexia, and even GI stasis if left untreated.

🐹 Preventive OVH in young females is key to avoiding this condition entirely, but for intact adults, we must educate owners about symptoms and treatment options.

💉 For follicular cysts, hormone therapy with GnRH or hCG may provide temporary relief, but results vary, and tit is usually not indicated. Serous cysts do not respond to hormone therapy but may be drained via ultrasound-guided aspiration for temporary symptom relief. However, cyst recurrence is almost guaranteed, meaning, they will fill back up.
📚 Want to learn how to intubate, anesthetize and perform surgery on guine pigs? Join our Membership!

Check vetahead.vet for more info! Join the movement!

#shorts

Видео Ovarian Cysts in a Female Guinea Pig канала Vetahead