Revolutionary national report on canine cruciate surgery puts owners at the heart of assessing outcomes for the first time

The revolutionary inaugural annual report of the RCVS Knowledge Canine Cruciate Registry has been published to provide veterinary professionals and owners around the world with the evidence they need to navigate clinical decisions with confidence.

Since the Registry’s launch two years ago, data from 735 surgical procedures performed on dogs at all stages of life – from 9 months to 15 years - have been logged by veterinary surgeons and dog owners across the country. This builds an evidence base on the effectiveness of different techniques for individual patients. It is the first time that a web-based registry such as this has been done at scale, incorporating feedback from both veterinary professionals and animal owners.

The Registry found that 78.3% of patients suffered a complete cruciate tear, with the majority of procedures performed being osteotomies. On examination, pain in the stifle was the most common clinical finding, with Labrador Retrievers, English Springer Spaniels, and Golden Retrievers being the most recorded breeds to undergo surgery.  At follow up assessment, the majority of owners reported that their dogs were better than before surgery. The full report provides further insights.   

The Registry aims to improve patient outcomes by collecting data on surgeries which can be used by veterinary surgeons to guide evidence-based decisions in practice. The data are provided by owners and veterinary surgeons across the UK who diligently contribute information on the canine cruciate surgeries they carry out.

Mark Morton, Clinical Lead for the Registry, said: “This prospective longitudinal study combines surgical data with owner reported outcomes on a national scale, for the first time. The amount of data will only continue to grow as more cases are enrolled and we follow up patients over longer time periods. We need to gather data from across the profession, incorporating all procedures so we can make valid comparisons.

“To the veterinary surgeons and colleagues already submitting cases, a huge thank you. This project relies on your continued involvement, and we are grateful for your assistance. Please encourage your colleagues to get involved.”

Ashley Doorly, Head of Quality Improvement at RCVS Knowledge, said “This first dataset provides fascinating results. I encourage you to read the report if you carry out canine cruciate surgery or own a dog.

“If you are thinking about taking part, or are already contributing, your data matters. Your participation will continue to help us grow the evidence to support all veterinary surgeons’ clinical decision-making. If you haven’t signed up yet, it only takes a few minutes to set up, and to log your data after performing surgery.”

The Registry can also be used as an audit tool, allowing surgeons to compile all their cruciate surgery data in one place to measure their outcomes, make changes to lead to improvements, and measure to see the results of the change. It also allows surgeons to compare their results against the national average.

You can download the RCVS Knowledge Canine Cruciate Registry Annual Report here