Comprehensive characterization of canine meniscal pathology

The entire dissertation/thesis text is included in the research.pdf file; the official abstract appears in the short.pdf file (which also appears in the research.pdf); a non-technical general description, or public abstract, appears in the public.pdf file.Title from PDF of title page (University of Missouri--Columbia, viewed on July 13, 2010).Thesis advisor: James L. Cook"May 2010"M.S. University of Missouri-Columbia 2010.Meniscal injury is one of the most common causes of pain and dysfunction in the human knee and canine stifle joint. In the canine patient, meniscal injury is usually secondary to cranial cruciate ligament rupture, and the resulting instability in the joint. Despite the prevalence of meniscal disease, the literature contains relatively few reports addressing mechanisms of disease for cranial cruciate ligament-associated meniscal injury. Diagnosis of meniscal tears can be challenging based on clinical signs and history alone, and diagnostic tests to confirm tearing can be expensive, invasive, and unavailable in some areas. Additionally, controversy remains regarding standard of care for treatment of the canine meniscus. Therefore, our overall line of research was to comprehensively characterize canine meniscal pathology with focus on three areas: 1) comparison of clinical and bench top measures of meniscal pathology in early meniscal disease, 2) comparison of diagnostic modalities for pathology of the caudal portion of the medial meniscus, and 3) investigation of the effects of a commonly utilized treatment of the medial meniscus.Includes bibliographical reference