Koen Santifort ^1,2* Sergio A. Gomes ³ Marco Ruggeri ^4,5 Emili Alcoverro ^4,6 Anna Tauro ^4,5 Esther Lichtenauer ² IRIS VAN SOENS ² Laurent Garosi ⁷ Ines Carrera ⁷ Niklas Bergknut ² Alba Farre Marine ⁸ Alejandro Luján Feliu-Pascual ⁸

• ¹ IVC Evidensia Small Animal Referral Hospital Arnhem, Neurology, Arnhem, Netherlands
• ² IVC Evidensia Small Animal Referral Hospital Hart van Brabant, Neurology, Waalwijk, Netherlands
• ³ Dovecote Veterinary Hospital, Castle Donington, United Kingdom
• ⁴ ChesterGates Veterinary Specialists, Norfolk, United Kingdom
• ⁵ North Carolina State University, Raleigh, North Carolina, United States
• ⁶ AniCura Ars Veterinària Hospital Veterinari, Barcelona, Spain
• ⁷ Vet Oracle Teleradiology, Norfolk, United Kingdom
• ⁸ Aúna especialidades veterinarias IVC Evidensia, Paterna (Valencia), Spain

Far-lateral intervertebral disc extrusions (IVDEs) have been reported infrequently in dogs in veterinary literature, mostly affecting the caudal lumbar intervertebral discs. We describe the clinical findings, computed tomography (CT) and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) findings, treatment, and outcome in 10 dogs with cervical far-lateral IVDEs. Patient databases of 3 small animal hospitals and 1 veterinary teleradiology service were retrospectively searched for patients in which imaging studies (CT or MRI) identified the presence of intervertebral disc material outside the limits of the intervertebral foramen. Presenting clinical signs included: episodic signs of cervical pain (6/10, 30%), persistent signs of cervical pain (3/10, 50%), nerve root signature or lameness (5/10, 50%), and abnormal cervical posture only (excluding nerve root signature) (1/10, 10%). Affected IVD spaces (for 11 IVDEs in 10 dogs) included: C3-4 (6/11, 55%), C5-6 (3/11, 27%), and C2-3 (2/11, 18%). Nerve root signature was not reported for C2-3 IVDEs. All cases were managed medically (without surgery). The top 3 used medications were gabapentinoids (10/10, 100%), non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) (10/10, 100%), and paracetamol (3/10, 30%). Median treatment duration was 25 days (range 10-84). Short-term outcome (<3 months) was recorded in 9/10 (90%) cases. Resolution of clinical signs was reported in 7/9 (78%) cases. Long-term follow-up was available for 6/10 (60%) cases (median 11.5 months, range 5.5-30 months); 5/6 (83%) showed resolution of clinical signs. Recurrence of clinical signs was reported in 1 case (9 months later), managed medically again, with successful outcome. In conclusion, cervical far-lateral disc extrusions are a rare clinical entity in dogs, but can result in severe, persistent or episodic, pain. Medical management is associated with a positive short-and long-term outcome in most cases.