What is "panosteitis"

n. A bone disease in dogs, characterized by sudden lameness and an increase in activity of osteoblasts and fibroblasts in the periosteum, endosteum and bone marrow, resulting in fibrosis.

Panosteitis, sometimes shortened to pano among breeders, is an occasionally seen long bone condition in large breed dogs. It manifests with sudden, otherwise unexplained pain and lameness sometimes shifting from leg to leg, usually between 5 and 14 months of age. Signs such as fever and weight loss, and symptoms such as anorexia, and lethargy can also be seen. The cause is unknown, but genetics, stress, infection, metabolism, or an autoimmune component may be factors. It has also been suggested that rapid growth and high-protein food are involved in the pathogenesis.

Panosteitis is characterized histologically by an increase in activity of osteoblasts and fibroblasts in the periosteum, endosteum and bone marrow, resulting in fibrosis and the formation of connective tissue in the medullary cavity of the affected bone. Pain may be caused by increased pressure in the medullary cavity and the stimulation of pain receptors in the periosteum.

The humerus is most commonly affected. Males are more commonly affected than females. Diagnosis is made by pain on palpation of the long bones of the limbs. X-rays may show an increased density in the medullary cavity of the affected bones, often near the nutrient foramen (where the blood vessels enter the bone). This evidence may not be present for up to ten days after lameness begins. Pain medication and exercise restriction can help to relieve the symptoms, and the lameness usually goes away after days to weeks without additional treatment. Recurrences up to the age of two years may occur. Larger breeds, such as German Shepherd Dogs, Golden Retrievers, Basset Hounds, Dobermanns, Labrador Retrievers, and Rottweilers, are more prone to this problem. There has been one suspected case of panosteitis in a fast-growing six-month-old camel with a shifting leg lameness.

Panosteitis is also referred to as eosinophilic panosteitis, enostosis, endosteal proliferation of new bone, and eopan.