In the past musculoskeletal ultrasonography in small animals has been limited by the frequency and design of transducers available to the clinician. Due to the dimensions of the structures involved and the size of the acoustic window, display of detail has been restricted. Previous publications have reported the use of transducers up to 10 MHz. The purpose of this study was to demonstrate the potential of using transducers with varying frequencies from 8 to 22 MHz and the application of extended field of view with 3D capability to display the normal anatomy of some canine limb joints.

In particular, the shoulder, stifle and tarsal joints of greyhounds were examined repetitively to determine the scan planes which could best reveal the maximum detail of the surrounding muscles, nerves, ligaments, synovial structures and joint surfaces and the sonograms were compared to anatomical specimens to aid with interpretation.

The detailed imaging of the various anatomical structures was accomplished with the use of ultra high frequency transducers, whereas the problems of angulation of these transducers were solved by the use of extended field of view imaging. Furthermore, three dimensional reconstruction appears to have the benefits of building up a large sample volume area and investigating it in multiple selected planes.

The results of the comparison between normal ultrasonograms and anatomical specimens were very promising, showing that the application of these techniques to various clinical cases has a significant potential for the veterinary practice.