Diagnosis and treatment of gastro-oesophageal junction abnormalities in dogs with brachycephalic syndrome

peer reviewedObjectives: To determine whether there is a benefit of using pre- and postoperative antacid treatment in dogs undergoing surgery for brachycephalic syndrome. To assess the use of an obstruction manoeuvre during endoscopy for the detection of dynamic gastro-oesophageal junction abnormalities. Materials and methods: Thirty-six client-owned brachycephalic dogs were prospectively included in a randomised trial. Antacid treatment was randomly prescribed in 18 dogs before and after surgery while the other 18 dogs did not receive any gastrointestinal medical treatment. At presentation, at the time of surgery and at recheck, digestive clinical signs and gastro-oesophageal junction abnormalities were assessed using specific scores. Gastro-oesophageal junction abnormalities were assessed during endoscopy in standard conditions as well as during endotracheal tube obstruction. This manoeuvre was also applied in an unrelated control group. Results: The results suggest a beneficial effect of antacid treatment on the improvement of digestive clinical signs and lesions in dogs with brachycephalic syndrome undergoing surgery. At postsurgical control 83% of dogs had a digestive clinical score ≤1 in the treated group in contrast to 44% in the non-treated group and 39% of dogs had a gastro-oesophageal abnormalities score (during obstruction manoeuvre) ≤1 in the treated group in contrast to 16.7% in the non-treated group. The use of the obstruction manoeuvre during endoscopic assessment in a control group revealed that gastro-oesophageal junction movements are negligible in healthy animals. Clinical significance: The addition of antacid treatment during the pre- and postoperative period for brachycephalic dogs undergoing surgery may result in a faster and greater improvement in treated dogs. The obstruction manoeuvre is an interesting technique to improve detection of gastro-oesophageal junction abnormalities