Frontosagittal and Vertebral indices of West African Dwarf Goat

Abstract

Thoracic malformations in animals induce exercise intolerance and reduce the reproductive performance due to respiratory distress. Some of these deformities can be corrected by surgical intervention. Frontosagittal and vertebral indices are crucial for diagnosis and surgical corrections of these anomalies. This information is not available in West African dwarf goat (WADG). The normal radiographic anatomy of the thoracic cage and the thoracic indices were evaluated in 10 West African dwarf goats of both sexes (5 male and 5 female), age one and half to three years using dorsoventral and lateral projections. The mean frontosagittal index (FSI) was 1.11 ± 0.004 and 1.13 ± 0.03 for the male and female WADG respectively while the mean vertebral index was 13.11 ± 0.34 and 13.00 ± 0.79, respectively. There was no significant difference in these indices
between the sexes. This study shows that sex is not a key factor in determination of FSI and VI of WADS either for diagnostic purposes or for quantitative assessment of the degree of surgical correction of thoracic cage anomalies.

Keywords: Frontosagittal index, Vertebral index, Thoracic malformation, West African dwarf goat
(WADG)