Small Animal Practice

Veterinary Teaching Hospital

Airlangga University

Differential Diagnose

• Dyspnea, defined as difficult or labored breathing, can be observed in dogs or cats as forced or difficult breathing, particularly when the dog or cat is at rest.

• Tachypnea, defined as increased of respiratory rate or excessive rapid breathing.

Physiological causes

• Exercise

• Fear

• High ambient temperature

• Pain

Upper airways disorders

• Cervical tracheal disease – Extraluminal compression – Foreign body – Hypoplasia/stenosis – Neoplasia

• Extraluminal • Intraluminal [Adenocarcinoma; Chondroma;

Chondrosarcoma; Leiomyoma; Lymphoma; Osteochondroma; Osteosarcoma; Plasmacytoma; Polyps; Rhabdomyosarcoma; Squamous cell carcinoma]

– Tracheal collapse* – Trauma

Upper airways disorders

• Pharyngeal disease

– Elongated or oedematous soft palate* (Dog)

– Enlarged tonsils*

• Laryngeal disease

– Everted saccules* (Dog)

– Laryngeal paralysis* (Dog)

– Neoplasia

– Oedema*

Upper airways disorders

• Nasal disease, e.g.

– Aspergillosis

– Foreign body*

– Inflammatory disease*

– Nasopharyngeal polyp

– Neoplasia

– Stenotic nares

Lower airways disorders

• Thoracic tracheal disease, e.g.

– Extraluminal compression

– Foreign body

– Hypoplasia/stenosis

– Neoplasia (extra- or intraluminal)

– Tracheal collapse*

– Trauma

Lower airways disorders

• Bronchial disease – Bronchiectasis – Broncho-oesophageal fistula – Chronic bronchitis* (Dog) – Cystic-bullous lung disease, e.g. secondary to

emphysema – Eosinophilic bronchitis* – Extraluminal compression

• Enlarged left atrium • Hilar lymphadenopathy, e.g. [Fungal disease; Granulomatous

disease; Neoplasia] • Neoplasia

Lower airways disorders

• Bronchial disease

– Feline asthma* (Cat)

– Foreign body

– Lungworm

– Neoplasia

– Primary ciliary dyskinesia

Lower airways disorders

• Pulmonary parenchymal disease – Foreign body

• Abscess • Chronic pulmonary fibrosis • Eosinophilic bronchopneumonopathy • Eosinophilic pneumonitis • Eosinophilic pulmonary granulomatosis • Hilar lymph node enlargement • Inhalation pneumonia

– Idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis – Inflammatory disease – Irritating gases

Lower airways disorders

• Pulmonary parenchymal

– Near drowning

– Neoplasia*

– Paraquat toxicity

– Pneumonia/infectious disease*

• Bacterial, e.g. [Bordetella bronchiseptica; Chlamydophila psittaci; E. coli; Klebsiella pneumoniae; Mycobacterium spp; Mycoplasma pneumoniae; Pasteurellosis]

Lower airways disorders

• Parenchymal – Endogenous lipid pneumonia

– Fungal, e.g. [Aspergillosis; Blastomycosis; Coccidioidomycosis; Cryptococcosis; Histoplasmosis; Pneumocystis]

– Parasitic, e.g. [Aelurostrongylus abstrusus; Angiostrongylus vasorum; Capillaria aerophila; Crenosoma vulpis; Oslerusspp; Paragonimus kellicotti; Visceral larva migrans]

– Protozoal, e.g. [Toxoplasmosis; Rickettsial]

– Viral, e.g. [Canine distemper virus* (Dog); Feline calicivirus* (Cat); Feline immunodeficiency virus* (Cat); Feline leukaemia virus* (Cat)]

Lower airways disorders

• Parenchymal – Pulmonary oedema

– Pulmonary thromboembolism, e.g. • Cardiac disease

• Heartworm disease

• Hyperadrenocorticism

– Smoke inhalation

– Trauma, e.g. • Pulmonary contusions

• Pulmonary haemorrhage

Restrictive Disorders

• Diaphragmatic hernia, e.g. – Peritoneopericardial diaphragmatic hernia – Traumatic*

• Large intra-abdominal mass • Neoplasia

– Mediastinal – Thoracic wall

• Pickwickian syndrome (extreme obesity) • Pleural effusion* • Pneumothorax*

Restrictive Disorders

• Severe ascites

• Severe gastric distension

• Severe hepatomegaly

• Thoracic wall abnormalities, e.g.

– Neoplasia

– Pectus excavatum

– Trauma*

Systemic and miscellaneous disorders

• Anaemia*

• Central neurological disease causing damage to respiratory centres, e.g. – Head trauma

– Hyperthermia*

– Hyperthyroidism* (Cat)

– Hypoxia*

– Metabolic acidosis

– Neuromuscular weakness, e.g. polyradiculoneuritis

– Shock/hypovolaemia*

Systemic and miscellaneous disorders

• Acute respiratory distress syndrome – Aspiration of acidic substances – Drug reaction – Inhalation injury – Lung lobe torsion – Multiple transfusions – Pancreatitis – Sepsis – Shock – Surgery – Trauma

Drugs/toxins

• Benzalkonium chloride • Blue-green algae • Dichlorophen • Ibuprofen • Metaldehyde • Naproxen • Paracetamol (methaemoglobinaemia) • Paraquat • Salbutamol • Strychnine • Terfenadine

Thank you….