This report describes the use of computed tomography (CT) in a nondomestic species. Postmortem CT was performed on a red kangaroo (Macropus rufus) and a diagnosis of oral osteomyelitis was made. CT examination revealed bony remodeling of the right mandible, an intraosseous lesion of the right temporal bone, muscle necrosis around the right mandible, and the absence of the right, first, upper molar tooth. Cardiac and intrahepatic gas and a distended intestine due to postmortem gas accumulation were also seen. All the lesions identified with CT were also identified by conventional necropsy, except the cardiac and intrahepatic gases. Virtopsy may be a useful procedure for the noninvasive identification of cause of death and as a guide for necropsy in animals.
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1 March 2011
Virtopsy in a Red Kangaroo with Oral Osteomyelitis
Ki-Ja Lee,
Motoki Sasaki,
Aki Miyauchi,
Miori Kishimoto,
Junichiro Shimizu,
Toshiroh Iwasaki,
Yoh-Ichi Miyake,
Kazutaka Yamada
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Animal
computed tomography
postmortem
red kangaroo
virtopsy