Anatomical and radiographic study for surgical approach of the arm and thigh in the white-eared opossum (Didelphis albiventris)

• Grant number: 22/03910-7
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Scientific Initiation
• Start date: September 01, 2022
• End date: August 31, 2023
• Field of knowledge: Agronomical Sciences - Veterinary Medicine
• Principal Investigator: Bruno Cesar Schimming
• Grantee: Amanda de Barros Piffer
• Host Institution: Instituto de Biociências (IBB). Universidade Estadual Paulista (UNESP). Campus de Botucatu. Botucatu , SP, Brazil

Abstract

There are reports in the literature that trauma resulting from being roadkill is common in wild animals. In addition, there are studies that demonstrate that femoral and humerus fractures are common in animals run over by automotive vehicles. Due to the proximity of the white-eared opossum to urban areas, reduction of natural predators and easy adaptation to urban environments, home invasions, trampling and attacks by dogs are increasingly common and, consequently, the increase in the number of care for these traumatized animals in veterinary centers specializing in wild animals. Thus, this project aims to describe the anatomy of the arm and thigh of the white-eared opossum (Didelphis albiventris) by anatomical and radiographic methodology to determine the anatomical basis for surgical approach to the humeral and femoral shaft for placement of locking compressive plates in the white-eared opossum. For this, ten corpses of white-eared opossums will be used. The animals will be from the Center for Medicine and Research in Wild Animals (CEMPAS), School of Veterinary Medicine and Animal Science, UNESP, Botucatu. The findings will be analyzed and compared to determine the appropriate surgical approaches for the aforementioned bones, as it is of fundamental importance to have an anatomical knowledge of the arm and thigh to perform osteosynthesis in the humerus and femur.