Peer-reviewed veterinary case report
Dog died from severe bleeding after lung biopsy during bronchoscopy
By Greenway, Clayton et al.·Published in Journal of veterinary internal medicine·2019·Department of Clinical Sciences, United States·View original on PubMed →
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Original publication title: Fatal hemoptysis after bronchoscopic biopsy in a dog.
- Species:
- dog
Plain-English summary
An 8-year-old mixed breed dog was taken to the vet for a persistent cough that was getting worse. During a procedure called bronchoscopy, the vet found thickened, irregular lung tissue and took a biopsy. Unfortunately, after the biopsy, the dog started bleeding heavily from the airway, and despite attempts to stop the bleeding, the dog went into cardiac arrest and could not be saved. A necropsy revealed that the bleeding was linked to damage from the biopsy on a blood vessel affected by previous heartworm disease. This case highlights a rare but serious risk associated with a common diagnostic procedure.
People also search for: dog coughing treatment · heartworm disease in dogs · complications of bronchoscopy in dogs
Abstract
An 8-year-old 24.6 kg mixed breed dog underwent bronchoscopy for evaluation of a persistent progressive cough. Bronchoscopy documented a markedly thick and irregular, cobblestone appearance of the mucosa. A bronchoscopic biopsy was obtained; immediately after the biopsy, a large amount of hemorrhage poured from the endotracheal tube. Multiple efforts to control the hemorrhage were unsuccessful and the dog suffered a cardiopulmonary arrest and could not be revived. A necropsy was performed, which was significant for pallor, evidence of prior heartworm disease, prominent bronchial arteries, and erosion of the submucosal vessels at the site of the biopsy. The cause of death was hemorrhage associated with transbronchial biopsy of an enlarged bronchial artery associated with heartworm disease. This report describes a rare complication of a routine diagnostic procedure.
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Search related cases →Original publication on PubMed: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/31663636/