INDIGENOUS COST-EFFECTIVE METHOD FOR TRACHEAL LAVAGE IN CANINES

Pulmonary airway sampling is always considered the chief diagnostic test for respiratory problems in dogs. The trans tracheal wash (TTW) technique is commonly used for collecting airway aspirates for cytological analysis and bacteriological examination. Tracheal lavage being the least invasive technique, requires local anesthesia or mild to moderate sedation and has been found beneficial in dogs with pulmonary diseases including pneumonia, chronic bronchitis, eosinophilic bronchopneumopathy, neoplasia, etc. In the present study, TTW was performed on ten clinically healthy adult dogs weighing more than 10 kg, using a 14 gauge IV cannula and disposable dog catheter (4FG, OD 1.30 MM) replacing the costly designed catheter. The study was performed with mild sedation using diazepam (0.5mg/kg) and ketamine (5mg/kg) combination intravenously in six dogs and only local anesthesia in another four dogs. Transtracheal wash fluid revealed low cellularity with alveolar macrophages as the predominant cell type, followed by respiratory epithelial cells, lymphocytes, eosinophils, and other cells (mast cells, plasma cells, goblet cells, basophils). This article summarizes an indigenous cost-effective TTW procedure for obtaining a representative cytological sample from the pulmonary airways.