Elbow Dysplasia Treatment in Dogs

Elbow dysplasia is a very broad term that encompasses several conditions that can affect the canine elbow including:

• Medial Coronoid Process Disease (formerly known as fragmented medial coronoid process)
• Ununited Anconeal Process (UAP), often seen in breeds like Labradors
• Osteochondrosis/Osteochondritis
• Dissecans (OC/OCD)
• Elbow Incongruity
• Any combination of the above conditions

Dogs with any of these issues have a more significant risk of developing canine elbow osteoarthritis, which influences the surgical treatment options. There are various surgical approaches to treat elbow dysplasia in dogs, such as:

• Elbow Arthroscopy for removing a fragmented medial coronoid process
• Elbow Arthroscopy for removing or reattaching an ununited anconeal process (UAP) in affected dogs
• Elbow Arthroscopy to address osteochondritis dissecans by resurfacing the OCD lesion, sometimes using synthetic implants or allografts
• Ulnar Osteotomy or Humeral Osteotomy to relieve pressure on affected areas
• Partial or Total Elbow Replacement.

Our team has extensive experience performing these surgical procedures for elbow dysplasia in dogs. The first essential step is a thorough diagnosis—such as elbow dysplasia radiographs—to understand the specific elbow condition in your dog. A complete evaluation allows us to choose the most effective treatment, whether it involves elbow dysplasia surgery or other methods.