Percutaneous transcholecystic cholangiography in dogs

ABSTRACT:

Obstructive biliary pathway diseases are not rare in dogs, especially those with severe clinical signs and those that need surgical treatment. Image diagnostic exams to evaluate biliary tract, like ultrasound, conventional X-ray and CT, have been used in veterinary medicine with some restrictions such as low sensibility, and in many regions unfeasibility of achievement. Due to this, most of the pacients with biliary obstruction sings are submitted to surgical procedure before an accurate diagnostic of the disease. This paper aimed to standardize and describe the percutaneous transcolecystic cholangiography in dogs that consists in the injection of contrast inside of the gall bladder guided by ultrasound. It allows to see all the bililary tract, using X-ray. The technique was performed 10 times in six clinical healthy dogs. The puncture was performed in the 9th intercostal right space near to the sternum using a 20G catheter, the dose was 1ml per 4kg. After contrast injection, serial radiographs of the abdominal region were made, in left lateral projection and ventrodorsal, the first projections were performed immediately after contrast injection and repeated after five and ten minutes. No animal showed any side effect due to the technique, this was confirmed by observation and by hepatic function evaluation. The technique was considered efficacious to visualize all the biliary tree and to see any possible obstruction in ill dogs.

INDEX TERMS:
Percutaneous; transcholecystic; cholangiography; dogs; cholecystocentesis; cholestasis; biliary obstruction; diagnostic imaging; clinics