Case of the week 7.18.22
Publication Date: 2022-07-18
History
11 year old mixed breed dog. Male castrated. Difficulty breathing/choking.
3 images
Findings
Thorax, ventrodorsal and opposite lateral radiographs are available for interpretation
An endotracheal tube is present within the trachea and terminates at the level of third ribs.
Within the caudal esophagus there is an ill-defined soft tissue opacity which extends from the fifth ribs to the level of the lower esophageal sphincter.
There is the impression that the tracheal lumen narrows at the level of the carina.
The cardiac silhouette and pulmonary vessels are normal. The pulmonary parenchyma and pleural space are normal.
Within the included portion of the abdomen, the stomach contains a mild to moderate volume of heterogeneous soft tissue material. The liver is mildly enlarged extending beyond the costal arch. There is mild bilateral periarticular new bone formation at both elbow joints. There is mild, multifocal, incidental spondylosis deformans.
Diagnosis
- Soft tissue opaque material within the caudal esophagus is most concerning for an esophageal foreign body. Endoscopy is recommended.
- The impression of narrowing of the trachea at the level of the carina may indicate some degree of tracheomalacia, however, compression secondary to the esophageal foreign body cannot be excluded.
- The material within the stomach likely represents digestible ingesta, however non-digestible material cannot be excluded.
- Mild hepatomegaly likely represents benign processes, however, a malignant process cannot be excluded.
Discussion
When performing the endoscopy, a large piece of beef fat was noted in the esophagus. This was pushed in the stomach to be digested.
There are also changes to one of the epihyoid bone being smaller, more irregularly marginated and in two pieces. This was noted on previous radiographs of the same patient and is of unknown clinical significance if any. A previous trauma is suspected.
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