Diagnosis and Management of Urinary Ectopia

Ectopic ureters are the most common cause of urinary incontinence in young dogs but should be considered as a differential in any incontinent dog for which the history is not known. Ectopic ureters can be diagnosed with excretory urography, fluoroscopic urethrography or ureterography, abdominal ultrasonography, cystoscopy, helical computed tomography, or a combination of these diagnostic procedures. Other congenital abnormalities can also occur in dogs with ectopic ureters, including renal agenesis or dysplasia, hydronephrosis, and/or hydroureter and vestibulovaginal anomalies; therefore, the entire urinary system must be evaluated with ultrasonography if cystoscopy is the only other diagnostic tool used before surgery. Novel surgical techniques and adjunctive medical management have improved the prognosis for dogs with urinary ectopia.