Megan Curnow

A 2-year-old female spayed British Shorthair cat presented for investigation of chronic small intestinal diarrhoea, which was determined to be attributable to ionised hypercalcaemia. A cranial mediastinal mass was identified on computed tomography; median sternotomy was performed, and the mediastinal mass was excised. Histopathology, including immunohistochemistry, diagnosed the mediastinal mass as being remnant thymic tissue. Subsequent follow-up 10 months postoperatively showed restoration of normocalcaemia and concurrent resolution of gastrointestinal symptoms. To the authors' knowledge, this is the first case to report remnant thymic tissue as a cause of hypercalcaemia. This case report aims to describe the clinical presentation, computed tomography description, histopathological findings and treatment outcome of a thymic remnant causing hypercalcaemia in a cat.

A one-year-old Suffolk ram was evaluated after a fourmonth history of intermittent left-sided bloating and regurgitation. The ram had been slowly losing condition while other sheep in the cohort were gaining weight. Severe megaoesophagus was confirmed on lateral thoracic and neck radiographs and a firm, 6-cm mass at the oesophageal sphincter was palpated during standing exploratory laparotomy. Postmortem examination confirmed an abscess was the cause of the partial oesophageal obstruction. The abscess yielded pure light growth of Streptococcus alactolyticus, an organism not reported to be associated with infection in sheep. Intermittent bloating is an unusual presentation in ruminants, and acquired megaoesophagus has been reported only very occasionally in sheep. This case report expands the list of differential diagnoses for abnormal regurgitation and intermittent bloating, and provides another specific cause of obstructive gastrointestinal disease in sheep. Acquired megaoesophagus was an unusual sequela of this primary disease.