Peer-reviewed veterinary case report
Endoscopic ultrasound helps diagnose chest lesions in two dogs
By Gaschen, L et al.·Published in Veterinary radiology & ultrasound : the official journal of the American College of Veterinary Radiology and the International Veterinary Radiology Association·2003·Department of Clinical Veterinary Medicine·View original on PubMed →
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Original publication title: Endoscopic ultrasonography for the diagnosis of intrathoracic lesions in two dogs.
- Species:
- dog
Plain-English summary
A 6-year-old Labrador and a 7-year-old mixed breed dog were both having breathing problems and weakness, leading their owners to seek further help. Traditional ultrasound couldn't clearly identify the cause of their intrathoracic (inside the chest) issues due to interference from gas in their lungs. However, endoscopic ultrasound, which uses a special probe to get closer to the problem areas, provided clearer images and helped diagnose the soft tissue issues. This method not only gave better information for treatment planning but also allowed for tissue samples to be taken during the procedure. Both dogs received appropriate treatment based on the findings.
People also search for: dog breathing problems · endoscopic ultrasound for dogs · dog weakness diagnosis
Abstract
Endoscopic ultrasound was developed initially in humans to overcome limitations of conventional ultrasound in examining certain internal organs due to intervening bone or air-filled structures. Endoscopic ultrasound has been used most widely in investigation of the gastrointestinal tract in humans, but many intrathoracic applications as well as endoscopic ultrasound-guided techniques have recently been described. Mediastinal and pulmonary structures can be examined with endoscopic ultrasound since a high frequency ultrasound probe can be brought into close contact with the areas of interest via a transesophageal approach. The purpose of this report is to describe the application of endoscopic ultrasound as an aid in the diagnosis of intrathoracic disease in the dog. Two dogs, one with a history of prior esophageal foreign body extraction, the other with apathy, weakness and dyspnea were referred for further investigation. Both dogs had caudal intrathoracic soft tissue opacities diagnosed radiographically, but their origin and nature were difficult to determine. Conventional ultrasound was limiting in both dogs due to their location and superimposition of gas-filled structures. With endosonography lesions were characterized more completely. We have found endoscopic ultrasound to be an elegant diagnostic tool for the investigation of radiographically detected intrathoracic lesions in the dog whose origins are difficult to determine or do not lend themselves to investigation by conventional ultrasound. Endoscopic ultrasound provides valuable diagnostic information complementary to that provided radiographically which aids in therapeutic planning. Endoscopic ultrasound was also more sensitive for detecting mediastinal lymphadenomegaly than radiography in one of the dogs. An additional advantage of endoscopic ultrasound is the fact that US-guided tissue sampling can be performed during the examination.
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Search related cases →Original publication on PubMed: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/12816371/