SA GI disease Flashcards
Signs of oropharyngeal and oesophageal disease?
Dysphagia Drooling saliva Halitosis Odynophagia Regurgitation
Signs of dysphagia?
Difficulty lapping or forming bolus Excessive jaw or head motion Dropping food from mouth Drooling saliva/foaming at mouth Persistent, ineffective swallowing Nasal discharge Gagging Coughing Failure to thrive Reluctance to eat or pain Halitosis Blood tinged saliva
Causes of dysphagia?
Functional neuromuscular dysphagia: - cricopharyngeal chalasia/achalasia - myasthenia gravis - brainstem disease - peripheral neuropathy - polymyopathy - hypothyroidism - botulism Morphological dysphagia: - oropharyngeal inflammation oropharyngeal trauma - foreign bodies - neoplasia - congenital/developmental (hare-lip, lip fold deformities, cleft palate, malocclusion, craniomandibular osteopathy, temporomandibular dysplasia)
Causes of halitosis?
Oropharyngeal disease - inflammation, neoplasia, foreign body Oesophageal disease Dietary associated Malabsorption Dental disease Nasal cavity and sinus disease Uraemia Liver disease Anal sac disease
Define pseudoptyalism and ptyalism?
Pseudoptyalism = failure to swallow normal volume of saliva Ptyalism = increased saliva production
How to differentiate between vomiting and regurgitation?
Vomiting (active) - salivation, heaving, digested food
Regurgitation (passive) - head down and food comes out, undigested food covered by mucus/saliva
Secondary signs of oesophageal and oropharyngeal disease?
Malnutrition/dehydration
Anorexia/polyphagia
Aspiration pneumonia/tracheal compression - cough, dysphagia
Radiography for swallowing problems/vomigurgitation?
Survey radiographs - head, neck, thorax
Barium oesophagram +/- fluoroscopy - barium mixed with food, iodine contrast if perforation suspected
‘Met check’
Lab investigations for swallowing problems/vomigurgitation?
Haematology Serum biochemistry and urinalysis Virology (cats especially) 'Special' tests - Anti-ACh receptor antibody (myaesthenia gravis) - 2-M antibodies (polymyositis) - ACTH stimulation test (hypoadrenocorticism) - Thyroid testing? - Toxicological tests?
Investigations for swallowing problems/vomigurgitation?
History and physical exam Diagnostic imaging Endoscopy Lab investigations FNA Biopsy
Major disease syndromes of the oesophagus?
Motility - megaoesophagus, dysautonomia, hiatal hernia
Obstruction - vascular ring, stricture, foreign body, neoplasia
Inflammation - oesophagi’s, reflux, hiatal hernia
Misc - diverticulum, broncho-oesophageal fistula
Definition of megaoesophagus?
Oesophageal dilation with functional paralysis
-> Failure of progressive peristalsis
Diagnosis of megaoesophagus?
Radiography +/- contrast
- uniformly dilated, gas and/or fluid filled
- ventral displacement of trachea
- secondary aspiration pneumonia
Fluoroscopy occasionally essential - oesophageal dysmotility
One example of each cause of secondary megaoesophagus?
Neuromuscular - myaesthenia gravis
Oesophageal - oesophagitis
Neuropathies - dysautonomia
CNS - distemper
Treatment and prognosis of idiopathic megaoesophagus?
Feeding from a height - bailey chair Slurry, textured food, meatballs? Bethanecol? Metaclopramide, cisapride? Prognosis - guarded, danger of aspiration pneumonia, spontaneous recovery in some
Causes of oesophagitis?
Ingestion of caustics and irritants
Foreign bodies
Acute and persistent vomiting
Gastric reflux
Clinical signs of oesophagitis?
Anorexia Dysphagia Odynophagia Regurgitation Hypersalivation
Diagnosis and treatment of oesophagitis?
Diagnosis - clinical signs, endoscopy, response to empirical treatment?
Symptomatic treatment - frequent small feeds, antibiotics, liquid antacids, local anaesthetics, gastrostomy tube feeding
Specific treatment - sucralfate, antacids, metaclopramide
Types/causes of oesophageal obstruction?
Intraluminal - foreign body, neoplasm, stricture, granuloma
Extraluminal - thyroid, thyme/mediastinum, vascular ring
Aetiology of oesophageal stricture?
Fibrosis after ulceration of mucosa by:
- foreign body
- caustic material
- severe oesophagitis
- gastric reflux esp. pooled secretions during GA
- drug therapy e.g. doxycycline in cats
Treatment of oesophageal stricture?
Bougienage - increased risk of perforation, longitudinal shear
Balloon dilatation - radial stretch (less traumatic), stationary force, less risk of perforation
Inject steroid around the lesion (triamcinolone acetonide)
Signalment of oesophageal foreign body?
Usually young animals
Common in greedy dogs eating chop bones esp terriers
Rare in cats
Diagnosis of oesophageal foreign body?
Radiography - don’t give barium! - visible foreign body, mediastinitis, abscess
Oesophagoscopy
Treatment for oesophageal foreign body?
Perforal approach: - flexible or rigid endoscope - preferably pull FB to mouth - or push to stomach for gastrostomy - check for oesophageal tear Surgical removal: - last resort - essential if large laceration Post removal: radiographs, PEG tube, omeprazole, sucralfate
Vomit reflex?
Contract pylorus Relax stomach and LOS Contract abdominal muscles Thorax vs closed glottis Open UOS Antiperistalsis
Differentials for chronic vomiting, secondary to systemic/metabolis disease?
Infections - distemper, lepto Pyometra Renal failure Hepatic disease Drugs - digoxin, erythromycin, morphine Ketoacidic DM Hypoadrenocorticism CNS disease - motion sickness, vestibular disease Neoplasia
Differentials for chronic vomiting, secondary to intestinal/peritoneal disease?
Inflammatory bowel disease
Intestinal neoplasia
Small intestinal obstruction
Pancreatitis
Differentials for chronic vomiting due to primary gastric diseases?
Chronic gastritis Gastric retention disorders Gastric ulcers Gastric neoplasia Diffuse GI disease involving stomach - inflammatory bowel disease, alimentary lymphoma
Signs of gastric disease?
Vomiting
Haematemesis
Nausea - hypersalivation, retching, anorexia
Melaena
Miscellaneous - belching, bloating, borborygmi, weight loss
Pathophysiology of gastric disease?
Gastric outflow obstruction
Gastroparesis
Disruption of mucosal barrier
Diagnosis of chronic vomiting?
Distinguish vomiting vs regurgitation
Eliminate secondary causes - Hx, PE, lab analysis, imaging
Abdominal imaging - plain radiography, contrast radiography, ultrasonography
Gastroscopy/coeliotomy
Symptomatic treatment
Physical exam for chronic vomiting?
Oral exam - ulcers, linear foreign body
Abdominal palpation - pain, foreign body, intra-abdominal mass, distended stomach or bowel
Rectal exam - diarrhoea, melaena
Lab evaluation for chronic vomiting?
Haematology
Biochemistry
Urinalysis - no pathognomic changes, more used to rule out systemic disease, also can assess hydration status
Radiography and ultrasonography for chronic vomiting - what can be checked for?
Radiography: survey abdominal radiograph - foreign body - abdominal mass - intestinal obstuction - peritonitis - GDV Ultrasonography: - foreign bodies - ulcers - thickening of gastric mucosa - loss of layering (suggests infiltration)
Indication for endoscopy (gastroscopy) for chronic vomiting and what is done?
If clinical or radiographic signs of gastric disease
Inspection and biopsy (even if grossly normal)
Foreign body removal
Causes of chronic gastritis?
Aetiology usually unknown Sometimes generalised IBD Chronic gastric parasitism Hairballs in cats? Spiral bacteria - Helicobacter? Immune mediated?
Clinical signs of chronic gastritis?
Intermittent chronic vomiting (vague)
+/- periodic early morning vomit with bile
+/- poor appetite
+/- gastric bleeding
Diagnosis of chronic gastritis?
Lab changes often non specific
Imagining findings non specific
Gastroscopy and biopsy
Treatment for chronic gastritis?
Removal of etiologic agent if known
Diet - multiple small meals, low fat diet (fatty foods stay in stomach longer), hypoallergenic diet (novel protein source, hydrolysed protein)
Acid blocker
Corticosteroids?
What are gastric retention disorders? Types?
Retention of food for >8h causing delayed vomiting of food
Anatomical flow obstruction
Functional disorder
- primary motility disorder
- inflammatory disease (IBD, gastric ulcer)
Anatomical outflow obstructions causing a gastric retention disorder?
Pyloric stenosis
Neoplasia, polyp
CHPG
Foreign body
Bilious vomiting?
Often occurs in dogs fed once daily (especially if fed in the morning)
Vomiting occurs overnight or in the morning
Vomitus often bile stained fluid, not food
Presumably reflects abnormal …
Diagnosis - rule out other causes of vomiting, treatment trial
Treatment - feed more often focussing on late meal, pro kinetics (ranitidine or metaclopramide)
Pyloric stenosis - breeds/species associations? Treatment?
Congenital in brachycephalic breeds
Association with megaoesophagus in cats
Treatment: pylorotomy/pyloroplasty
What is chronic hypertrophic pylorogastropathy (CHPG)?
Idiopathic mucosal hypertrophy
May cause outflow obstruction
Most common in toy breeds
Treatment - surgery
Treatment for functional causes of gastric retention?
Treat underlying inflammatory disease
Prokinetics
- metaclopramide: stimulates normal gastric peristalsis
- ranitidine: H2 antagonist plus pro kinetic action
- erythromycin: low dose stimulates motilin receptors
Causes of haematemesis?
Generalised bleeding Swallowed blood - oropharyngeal, nasal, pulmonary Severe gastritis Gastric ulcer Gastric neoplasia Duodenal disease
Signs of gastric ulcers?
Haematemesis Melaena Anaemia Weight loss Pain Peritonitis etc if perforated
Aetiology of gastric ulcers?
Drugs - NSAIDs, corticosteroids Head and spinal injuries - in combination with corticosteroids, also colonic ulcers/perforations Gastritis Metabolic - liver disease, uraemia Bile reflux? Mastocytosis Gastrinoma (Zollinger-Ellison) Spiral bacteria - Helicobacter?
Helicobacter species? Cause disease?
H felis H heilmannii H bizzozeroni others High prevalence (~100%) - seen on biopsy Evidence of recognition by host - Ab response, lymphoid follicles Often no evidence of clinical disease But a cause of chronic gastritis?
Treatment for gastric ulcers?
Treat identifiable primary cause Sucralfate Acid blockers - antacids, H2 antagonists (cimetidine licensed but poss poor efficacy and side effects, ranitidine can be used for motility disorders under cascade), proton pump inhibitors (omeprazole) Antibiotics? Triple therapy?
Prevention of gastric ulcers?
Limited protective effect: H2 antagonists, PPis, sucralfate
Protective: synthetic PGE (misoprostol)
Triple therapy for Helicobacter?
2 antibiotics plus an acid blocker e.g. amoxicillin, metronidazole and omeprazole
Or 3 antibiotics e.g. amoxicillin, metronidazole and clarithromycin (works on luminal and intracellular)
Gastric adenocarcinoma - what do they do? When to suspect?
Infiltrate gastric wall - fibrosis/thickening, ulceration Often lesser curvature/distal stomach Metastasis to local LN and liver Predisposition in Belgian shepherds, collies, bull terriers Suspect in older animal with: - chronic vomiting - anorexia and weight loss - haematemesis and melaena - anaemia - drooling saliva
Gastric neoplasias?
Primary neoplasia infrequent Middle age/older male dogs > cats Dogs: - adenocarcinoma (75%) - lymphoma - polyps - leiomyoma/leiomyosarcoma Cats: - lymphoma - adenocarcinoma
Diagnosis of gastric adenocarcinoma?
Contrast radiography
Endoscopic biopsy - often to superficial
Full thickness biopsy
Treatment and prognosis for gastric adenocarcinomas?
Surgical resection (palliative, rarely curative)
Grave/hopeless prognosis - probably painful
‘Leather-bottle’ stomach
Advantages and disadvantages of abdominal radiography?
Advs: - quick - allows global overview - assessment of thorax and spine - allows differentiation of gas/mineralisation Disadvs: - superimposition - lack of contrast - soft tissue/fluid same opacity
Technique for abdominal radiography?
Take on expiration
Low kVp, high MAS
Grid if >10cm
Projections: VD, right lateral, +/- left lateral
Advs and disadvantages of contrast radiography?
Advs: - improves sensitivity - identification of anatomy not seen on plain radiographs (e.g. urethra or ureters, blood vessels) - allows assessment of internal structure - some info on function Disadvs: - time consuming - expensive - complications
Techniques for contrast radiography?
Appropriate patient restraint (Ga often required)
Requires food patient preparation - enemas (LUT, LI studies)
Take plain images first
Obtain enough images - genuine lesions are consistent and reproducible
What negative contrast medias are used for radiography? When? Advs/disadvs?
Air, N20, CO2 Used for bladder and gastric studies Cheap, simple and minimal risk Air embolus reported, poor mucosal detail Reduce exposure
What are positive contrast medias for radiography?
Radiopaque (higher atomic number) Water soluble (iodine based) Non soluble (barium) Iodine based agents divided into: - ionic and non-ionic - high osmolar and low osmolar Increase exposure
Advs and disadvs of abdominal ultrasonography?
Advs: - assessment of internal architecture - assessment of vasculature - better soft tissue contrast - guided biopsy - accurate measurement - real time assessment motility Disadvs: - limited field of view - difficult if large amounts of gas - operator and equipment dependent
Indications for abdominal CT?
Surgical planning Tumour staging Retroperitoneal disease Parenchymal organs (larger dogs) Vascular malformations Ureters Insulinoma (esp large dogs) Pelvic canal
When is abdominal CT not useful?
GIT
Small dogs/cats
Severe renal disease - need IV contrast
Things to do/check for US guided FNA/biopsy of an abdominal lesion?
Identify if lesion accessible
Allows visualisation of needle
21-22G
Assess coagulation times and platelets if perform Tru-cut biopsy
Avoid FNA bladder tumours
Avoid crossing body cavities
Catheter biopsy for bladder/urethral masses
Radiological assessment?
Check extra-abdominal structures
Assess boundaries of abdomen
Assess serosal detail - relies upon fat between organs
Assess each organ system
5 opacities
Roentgen signs - size, shape, margination, opacity etc
What can reduced serosal detail of an abdominal radiograph indicate?
Reduced fat - check body condition
Effacement by fluid/ST (ascites, peritonitis)
Appearance of ascites on US? Where to look?
Fluid anechoic Need to sample to determine type Look adjacent to liver and bladder Assess hepatic veins Dilation HV - right sided heart disease
What does free gas in the peritoneum look like on radiography? Is it significant? What does it indicate?
Large volumes relatively easy to detect - caudal to diaphragm, around stomach/serosal surfaces
Smaller volumes present as gas bubbles outside of GIT
Always significant (unless recent ex-lap)
Indicates rupture of hollow virus (gas producing peritonitis/penetrating trauma)
Usually fluid present also
What is in the retroperitoneum? What to look for radiographically?
Space of fat opacity
Primarily kidneys but also Lns, great vessels, adrenals
Swelling and masses - increased soft tissue ventral to spine replacing/obscuring fat, ventral displacement of colon, assess ventral spine carefully
LNs - ventral to L6/7 (not normally visible), may displace and compress colon/rectum - drain pelvic canal and pelvic canal and pelvic limbs (look for anal sac, bladder, prostatic disease, pelvic limb masses)
Normal appearance of adrenal glands on radiography?
Not normally visible (may mineralise in cats)
Large masses may displace kidneys ventrolaterally
neoplastic disease may mineralise in dogs
Where are the adrenal glands found on US? Shape?
Left renal artery and CVC landwarks Left adrenal is monkey nut shaped Right adrenal is arrow shaped May invade vessels incidental nodules common Still need endocrine testing
Differentials for organomegaly?
Focal enlargement - neoplasia, granuloma, abscess, cyst
Diffuse enlargement - inflammation, metabolic disease, infiltrative neoplasia, congestion
Significance of reduced organ size?
Usually chronic disease
Mineralisation common
Often irregular
Poor correlation with function
Significance of organ shape changes?
More sensitive than size changes
Often non specific - neoplasia, cysts, haematomas, granuloma
No information on function
Significance and causes of abdominal mineralisation?
Often incidental Dystrophic - secondary to damaged tissue Metastatic - secondary to abnormal Ca/P Calculi Ingesta Neoplasia
What to assess about the liver on radiography?
Position relative to costal arch
Shape of caudal margins (should be sharp)
Caudoventral border sharp triangle
Gastric axis perpendicular to spine - parallel to ribs