Peer-reviewed veterinary case report
Distal esophageal sphincter achalasia in a Labrador retriever dog with polypoid gastric mucosal hyperplasia and pyloric stenosis.
- Journal:
- The Canadian veterinary journal = La revue veterinaire canadienne
- Year:
- 2019
- Authors:
- Dye, Charlotte et al.
- Affiliation:
- Pride Veterinary Centre · United Kingdom
- Species:
- dog
Plain-English summary
An 11-year-old spayed female Labrador retriever was brought to the vet because she was having severe vomiting, regurgitation, and coughing. Tests, including a special type of imaging called CT, showed that her esophagus was enlarged and had a "bird beak" shape, which indicated a condition called distal esophageal achalasia (a problem with the muscle that helps food move from the esophagus to the stomach). The imaging also revealed issues with her stomach, including thickening of the pylorus (the opening from the stomach to the intestine) and abnormal growths in the stomach lining. She developed aspiration pneumonia, which is a lung infection caused by inhaling food or liquid, but her condition did not improve with medication alone. After surgery to correct the problems with her esophagus and stomach, she showed significant improvement.
Abstract
An 11-year-old, neutered female, Labrador retriever dog was presented with a history of intractable vomiting, regurgitation, and coughing. Computed tomography (CT) imaging identified marked hypertrophy of the distal esophagus with a suspicion of distal esophageal achalasia, based on the observation of a "bird beak" appearance. This was later confirmed on a fluoroscopic swallow study. Marked hypertrophy of the gastric pylorus was also identified on CT imaging, and polypoid gastric mucosal hyperplasia was diagnosed based on the gross endoscopic appearance combined with gastric histopathology. Secondary aspiration pneumonia was diagnosed based on the results of CT imaging, bronchoscopy and bronchoalveolar lavage fluid analysis. Medical therapy alone failed to elicit any significant improvement, but clinical resolution was achieved following surgical intervention comprising Ventral Heller myotomy, Dor's fundoplication, and pyloroplasty.
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Search related cases →Original publication: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/31692575/