The Use of a Cutting Balloon for Dilation of a Fibrous Esophageal Stricture in a Cat

Abstract

Esophageal strictures are uncommon in cats with causes including medications, ingestion of caustic substances, or gastroesophageal reflux under anesthesia. Bougienage and balloon dilation are the main treatments for strictures but have variable success rates. This paper describes the novel use of a cutting balloon for dilation of a fibrous stricture in a cat that was previously refractory to treatment with traditional balloon dilation.

Surgical treatment of a distal oesophageal stricture by mucosal radial incision and dilation in a kitten with secondary megaoesophagus

“…19 Of all the aforementioned techniques, only stent placement and cutting balloon dilation have been reported in companion animals. [20][21][22] In our case, use of bougies, cutting balloon or balloon stenting were not an option because it was impossible to pass an instrument throughout the stricture owing to its very narrow diameter, and possibly because it might have not been rectilinear. Consequently, surgical endoluminal radial incisions technique was elected because it was considered to be the safest option.…”

The use of Savary-Gilliard dilators in the treatment of an oesophageal stricture in a cat

“…In veterinary medicine several treatment methods can be used in the cases of oesophageal strictures. The conservative treatment relies on special, semi-liquid diet, high positioning of the bowl and treating the underlying disease (Wesdorp and Bartelsman 1982;Gallagher and Specht 2013). Moreover, the oesophageal stricture can be treated pharmacologically with the anti-inflammatory drugs (including steroids) and antibiotics.…”

“…Therefore the endoscopic methods, which are less risky and less invasive than surgical operation and more effective than drug therapy are the preferred methods of treating oesophageal strictures in dogs and cats. However, the procedures involving the mechanical expansion of oesophageal strictures may need to be performed several times to consolidate the effect, which is associated with the need of repeated anesthesia and great discomfort for the patient (Adamama-Moraitou et al 2002;Bissett et al 2009;Gallagher and Specht 2013). Therefore, the use of stents seems to be a preferable alternative.…”

“…Clinical signs of an oesophageal stricture in animals are nonspecific. The main features are due to dysphagia which firstly affect the ingestion of large portions of solid food, but later they can include semi-solid and liquid food as well (Adamama-Moraitou et al 2002;Gallagher and Specht 2013). The characteristic sign of an oesophageal strictureregurgitation, is secondary to the accumulation of food in the oesophagus.…”

“…Treatment strategies of the oesophageal stricture in dogs and cats are mainly image-guided interventions, including ballooning, the Savary-Gilliard dilators technique (bougienage) and stenting (Galatos et al 1994;Adamama-Moraitou et al 2002;Couturier and Guilbaud 2006;Bissett et al 2009;Gallagher and Specht 2013;Tan et al 2018).…”