Anatomical variations in the circle of Willis in canines

Toshiyuki Tanaka; Hideo Akiyoshi; Keiichiro Mie

doi:10.1111/ahe.12390

Anatomical variations in the circle of Willis in canines

Anat Histol Embryol. 2018 Dec;47(6):609-612. doi: 10.1111/ahe.12390. Epub 2018 Jul 22.

Authors

Toshiyuki Tanaka^{1

2}, Hideo Akiyoshi¹, Keiichiro Mie¹

Affiliations

¹ Laboratory of Veterinary Surgery, Graduate School of Life and Environmental Sciences, Osaka Prefecture University, Izumisano-shi, Osaka, Japan.
² Kinki Animal Medical Training Institute, Osaka, Japan.

PMID: 30033543
DOI: 10.1111/ahe.12390

Abstract

The circle of Willis (CW) supplies blood to the brain. In humans, anatomical variations in the CW are an important risk factor for transient ischaemic attack and stroke. In canines, anatomical variations in the CW have not been reported. The aim of this study was to determine anatomical variations in the CW in dogs by magnetic resonance angiography. Normal configuration of the CW was observed in 82%, aplasia of the precommunicating segment of the rostral cerebral artery was observed in 14%, and aplasia of the rostral communicating artery was observed in 4% of dogs included in the study.

Keywords: circle of Willis; dogs; magnetic resonance angiography.

MeSH terms

Animals
Brain / blood supply*
Circle of Willis / anatomy & histology*
Dogs
Epilepsy / diagnosis*
Epilepsy / diagnostic imaging
Epilepsy / veterinary
Female
Magnetic Resonance Angiography / veterinary*
Male
Retrospective Studies
Seizures / diagnosis*
Seizures / diagnostic imaging
Seizures / veterinary