Ectopic spleen presenting with anemia and an abdominal mass in a dog.

An 11.5-year-old, neutered male, golden retriever dog was presented to the Internal Medicine Service of the Mississauga-Oakville Veterinary Emergency Hospital & Referral Group (MOVEH) in February, 2012 for investigation of a mid-abdominal mass diagnosed on referral abdominal radiographs. The patient was reported to have had intermittently pale mucous membranes and periods of lethargy in the 2 wk prior to presentation. Referral serum biochemical profile and complete blood (cell) count (CBC), performed 1 d prior to presentation, demonstrated a moderate, normocytic, normochromic, poorly responsive anemia [hematocrit 0.28 L/L; reference interval (RI): 0.39 to 0.60 L/L], mild lymphopenia (0.9 × 109/L; RI: 1.0 to 4.8 × 109/L), hyperglobulinemia (40 g/L; RI: 18 to 39 g/L), and hypochloridemia (105 mmol/L; RI: 107 to 123 mmol/L). Peripheral blood smear evaluation demonstrated few Howell-Jolly bodies, mild poikilocytosis, rare polychromasia, and shift platelets. Thoracic radiographs were normal. The patient lived in southern Ontario and no travel history was reported. The patient had been presented to the Internal Medicine Service at the MOVEH, on March 7, 2010, for evaluation of a cranial abdominal mass found incidentally on physical examination by the referring veterinarian. Ultrasound examination at that time revealed a splenic mass of mixed echogenicity that measured 6.6 cm × 4.6 cm. Although no free abdominal fluid was noted, the mesentery surrounding the mass was hyperechoic suggesting possible previous rupture. Thoracic radiographs were normal. Based on the size of the mass, the possibility of previous rupture, and potential for future hemorrhage, splenectomy was performed 8 d after initial presentation. Histopathology of the mass and adjacent splenic tissue was consistent with splenic red pulp nodular hyperplasia with congestion and hematopoiesis; no evidence of neoplasia was reported.