The nation’s first enteral endoprosthesis implantation in a canine was recently conducted by the National Chung Hsing University Department of Veterinary Medicine’s Veterinary Medical Teaching Hospital.
A woman in Taoyuan County, surnamed Chung (鍾), discovered that her dog, a Maltese nicknamed Nan Nan (囡囡), started producing bloody stools a year ago, the hospital said.
After the condition worsened, necessitating prescription laxatives, the hospital conducted more tests and discovered that the Maltese’s intestinal tracts were covered with multi-sized tumors.
Photo courtesy of the National Chung Hsing University Department of Veterinary Medicine’s Veterinary Medical Teaching Hospital
Veterinarians said that the only option was for the dog to undergo surgery to remove all of the tumors, but that the 16-year-old Maltese might be unable to withstand the trauma of a major operation.
Through other sources, Chung learned that the hospital offered another method of treatment — the installation of enteral endoprosthesis, in which a prosthetic intestine is inserted through the anal opening and “propped open” under observation through X-ray.
The endoprosthesis is said to be able to exert pressure across a 360o radius and effectively “widen” the intestinal tract to help the Maltese resume normal bowel movements, veterinarian Shu Hsiao-ching (蘇筱晶) said.
Dogs can return home the day after the procedure, and their owners can choose to continue giving their pet laxatives to aide the recovery process, Su said, adding that if a dog is in pain, a small dose of painkillers could be prescribed.
Dogs have to get used to the inserted endoprosthesis, but the adjustment period should take no longer than one to two weeks, Su said.
This is not a permanent solution, because in the long run tumors will eventually outsize the endoprosthesis and once more clog the intestinal tract, Su added.
Citing research from other nations, Su said that even when an adenocarcinoma on the colonal-rectal border is surgically removed, a dog’s maximum average life span was 22 months, adding that their life span without surgical operation was 15 months.
The primary goal of installing an enteral endoprosthesis is not to remove tumors, but to allow the animal to empty its bowels without making any incisions, creating a better quality of life in the final stages of the disease, Su said.
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