Didelphis albiventris: avaliação radiográfica, ultrassonográfica e eletrocardiográfica

Abstract

Opossums are animals widely distributed in South America, and the white-eared opossum (Didelphis albiventris) is quite common in southern Brazil. These animals play an important role in environmental biobalance, are excellent seed dispersers and control insects and venomous animals. Opossums are often referred for clinical care at Wild Animal Screening Centers (CETAS), despite this, there are few works in the literature with reference values for this species of skunk, especially with regard to imaging tests and also electrocardiography. Chest radiography provides extensive information about the cardiovascular and respiratory systems, and is routinely used to evaluate these systems, in addition to diagnosing traumatic changes such as pleural effusion, fractures of ribs and thoracic vertebrae. Abdominal ultrasound is one of the ways to understand the abdominal cavity, and its use is essential in the evaluation and identification of changes in the reproductive, urinary, and digestive tracts in different species. And the electrocardiogram provides information about cardiac electrical activity, being a simple and essential exam in cardiovascular evaluation. Due to the little information regarding this wild species, the objective of this dissertation is to present four articles resulting from the research carried out during the master’s degree. The first is a survey of wild animals sent, between 2017-2020, to the Diagnostic Imaging and Cardiology Laboratory for radiographic examinations. From this survey, it was observed that skunks were the most frequent mammals in this period. The second manuscript presents an analysis of chest radiographs of 26 adult D. albiventris, from which the thoracic depth, tracheal diameter, and cardiac measurements, the VHS (Vertebral Heart Size) and VLAS (Vertebral Heart Atrial Size) were obtained. The third manuscript refers to the abdominal ultrasonographic evaluation of 38 baby skunks; this evaluation allowed to evaluate characteristics and measure the organs of this cavity. Finally, the fourth article is the electrocardiographic evaluation of 32 baby opossums, in which the amplitude and duration of P waves, QRS and T complexes were established, in addition to the determination of the mean electrical axis of P and the QRS complex. This work presents important information about skunks (D. albiventris) that can serve as parameters for clinicians and imaging specialists, contributing to the preservation of this wild species.