Mechanical dilation, botulinum toxin A injection, and surgical myotomy with fundoplication for treatment of lower esophageal sphincter achalasia-like syndrome in dogs.

Background: Megaesophagus (ME) carries a poor long-term prognosis in dogs. In people, lower esophageal sphincter (LES) achalasia is a rare cause of ME that may respond to targeted intervention. Dogs with lower esophageal sphincter achalasia-like syndrome (LES-AS) have been described recently, warranting investigation of analogous targeted treatment.

Interstitial lung diseases.

Several noninfectious nonneoplastic interstitial lung diseases (ILDs) have been recognized in dogs and cats. Overall, these ILDs are poorly characterized in dogs and cats, although awareness of the conditions based on descriptions of clinical case series may be increasing. Lung biopsy remains crucial to the diagnosis, characterization, and classification of ILDs.

Respiratory defenses in health and disease.

Every breath holds the potential to introduce infectious organisms and irritating particulates into the respiratory tract. Despite this continuous exposure, the lungs usually remain sterile. Further, potential pathogens are distinguished from innocuous particulates, thus sparing the respiratory tract from damaging inflammation.

Clinical evaluation of mitoxantrone and piroxicam in a canine model of human invasive urinary bladder carcinoma.

Purpose: Cyclooxygenase inhibitors show promise in chemoprevention and therapy of certain carcinomas, an effect that may be additive to that of standard chemotherapy. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the efficacy of combined therapy using the cyclooxygenase inhibitor, piroxicam, and mitoxantrone against a relevant canine model of human invasive bladder cancer.

Experimental Design: Fifty-five dogs with transitional cell carcinoma of the urinary bladder were enrolled in this nonrandomized one-armed prospective multi-institutional clinical trial.