Peer-reviewed veterinary case report
Surgery outcomes for breathing problems in pugs French and English
By Liu, Nai-Chieh et al.·Published in Veterinary surgery : VS·2017·Department of Veterinary Medicine, United Kingdom·View original on PubMed →
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Original publication title: Outcomes and prognostic factors of surgical treatments for brachycephalic obstructive airway syndrome in 3 breeds.
- Species:
- dog
Plain-English summary
A group of 50 pugs, French bulldogs, and bulldogs with breathing problems due to brachycephalic obstructive airway syndrome (BOAS) underwent surgery to improve their airways. After surgery, their breathing scores improved from 76% to 63%, but they still showed some issues. Factors like being older, having a poor body condition, and having laryngeal collapse (a serious airway issue) were linked to worse outcomes. The study found that a newer surgical technique called modified multilevel surgery (MMS) might provide better results than traditional surgery. Many dogs showed improvement, but ongoing care and monitoring are essential.
People also search for: bulldog breathing problems surgery · pug airway surgery recovery · French bulldog BOAS treatment
Abstract
OBJECTIVE: To determine prognostic indicators for the surgical treatment of brachycephalic obstructive airway syndrome (BOAS) and to compare the prognosis of 2 multilevel surgical procedures. STUDY DESIGN: Prospective clinical study. SAMPLE POPULATION: Client-owned pugs, French bulldogs, and bulldogs (n = 50). METHODS: Noninvasive whole-body barometric plethysmography (WBBP) was used to assess respiratory function before, 1 month and 6 months after upper airway corrective surgery. Postoperatively, BOAS indices (ie, ascending severity score generated from WBBP data, 0%-100%) that equaled to or exceeded the cut-off values of BOAS in the diagnostic models were considered to have a "poor prognosis." A multivariate logistic regression was used to assess predictors for prognosis. RESULTS: The median BOAS indices decreased after surgery (from 76% to 63%, P < .0001), although dogs with indices in this range would still be considered clinically affected. Age (odds ratios [OR] = 0.96, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 0.93-0.99, P < .05), body condition (OR = 0.06, 95% CI: 0.01-0.39, P < .01), laryngeal collapse (OR = 6.1, 95% CI: 1-37.22, P < .05), and surgical techniques (OR = 7.94, 95% CI: 1.17-54.01, P < .05) were associated with postoperative prognosis. The multivariate model suggests modified multilevel surgery (MMS) may have a better outcome than traditional multilevel surgery (TMS) (P = .034). The positive predictive value of the logistic model was 84% (95% CI: 68-94%) and the area under the receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve was 89% (95% CI: 78-99%, P <.0001). CONCLUSIONS: Younger age, normal body condition, presence of laryngeal collapse, and treatment with TMS were negative prognostic factors after surgical treatment of BOAS. MMS is recommended, particularly in dogs with a higher probability of poor prognosis.
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Search related cases →Original publication on PubMed: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/28146288/