RESEARCH COMMUNICATIONS OF THE 28th ECVIM-CA CONGRESS

Mean body weight was 21.6+12.5kg with 5 dogs <5kg, 19 dogs 5‐10kg, 10 dogs 10‐20kg, and 50 dogs >20kg. German Shepherds (4), Labradors (4), and Standard Poodles (4) were most commonly affected. Clinical complaints included cough (80/87, 92%) and nasal discharge (25/87 dogs, 29%). Thoracic radiographs were normal in 14/86 (16%) dogs with variable pulmonary patterns in the remaining dogs. The most common bronchoscopic findings were hyperemia (61/86; 71%), increased airway mucus (57/86; 66%), airway collapse (24/86; 28%), and bronchiectasis (10/86; 12%). Inspissated intraluminal material was observed in 9/86 (10%) of dogs. One of these dogs had airway eosinophils of only 2% but demonstrated histologic evidence of eosinophilic infiltration. Median airway eosinophilia in the remaining 85 dogs was 39% (range 15‐95%). Bronchoalveolar lavage total nucleated cells/μl ranged from 200 to 33,800/μl (median 1800). Neoplasia and pulmonary parasites were diagnosed in 1 dog each, and 2 dogs had concurrent bacterial infection. Aspergillus spp. were detected on aerobic culture in 2 dogs but were considered probable contaminants.