Aspiration pneumonia is an infection that occurs when liquid substances or solid particles enter the lungs through breathing. It usually occurs in puppies, particularly in people who are not fed properly with the enteral feeding tube or who have a cleft palate (a malformation characterized by the presence of a gap in the palate). Aspiration pneumonia requires immediate and intensive veterinary care. If your puppy has contracted this infection, take him to the vet immediately, care for him at home once he is released from the clinic, and take the necessary steps to avoid recurrence.
Steps
Part 1 of 3: Providing Veterinary Care
Step 1. Contact your vet immediately
When something other than the air we breathe is introduced into the lungs (such as water or food), this phenomenon is called aspiration and causes aspiration pneumonia, a bacterial infection that can worsen very quickly. If you notice that your puppy has inhaled food, liquid or medication (for example, milk is leaking from the nose), take him to the vet right away. Other symptoms of aspiration pneumonia include:
- Breathing with the mouth open;
- Wet rales, crackles;
- Cyanotic gums (usually pink)
- Weakness;
- Wheezing;
- Cough (accompanied by humid noises);
- Fever;
- Lethargy.
Step 2. Get the puppy examined
Your vet will examine him and carry out several tests to confirm the diagnosis of aspiration pneumonia. During the physical exam, he will auscultate the lungs for abnormal noises. The diagnostic tests he may perform include:
- Chest X-ray
- Blood analysis;
- Pulse oximetry, which measures oxygen saturation in the blood.
Step 3. Allow the vet to administer supportive care
If the case is severe, you will need to hospitalize the puppy so that the vet can proceed to supportive care immediately. It won't cure pneumonia directly, but it will help your furry friend recover and get better. Supportive care could include:
- Oxygen therapy to increase oxygen levels in the blood
- Administration of drugs to promote breathing (bronchodilators);
- Intravenous fluid administration to rehydrate the patient;
- Administration of antiemetic drugs.
Step 4. Allow the vet to begin antibiotic therapy
Antibiotics are needed to treat the bacterial infection that causes aspiration pneumonia. If the vet has taken a sample of fluids from the lungs, he will prescribe an antibiotic to kill the bacteria that cause the problem.
If the sample cannot be collected, he will likely prescribe a broad spectrum antibiotic capable of fighting different bacterial strains
Part 2 of 3: Assisting the Puppy at Home
Step 1. Continue the antibiotic therapy
It may take your furry friend a long time to recover from a bacterial infection affecting the lungs. When he has regained his strength to go home, the vet will prescribe antibiotic therapy for a few weeks. To make sure you eradicate all bacteria, give your puppy the full course of antibiotics, without skipping any doses.
Do not stop treatment if you feel fit and feel better. If you stop treatment earlier than expected, there is a risk that not all bacteria have been killed. Those who survived could multiply and become resistant to other antibiotics
Step 2. Get your puppy checked frequently
Your vet will likely want to see him regularly during antibiotic therapy to make sure his health is improving. During these checkups, he will take chest x-rays to examine the condition of the lungs.
Step 3. Treat megaesophagus syndrome
If your little friend has this disease, he can often regurgitate his food and involuntarily aspirate tiny particles from it entering his lungs, causing aspiration pneumonia. After treatment at the vet's office, help your puppy around the house by managing megaesophagus syndrome correctly:
- Have him eat and drink upright;
- Keep it upright for 20-30 minutes after it has finished eating and drinking.
- Add water to dry food to facilitate passage into the esophagus;
- Administer medications according to your veterinarian's prescription.
Part 3 of 3: Preventing Any Problems Related to Aspiration Pneumonia
Step 1. Feed him carefully with the tube
Inadequate enteral feeding, which involves over-feeding or placing the tube in the trachea rather than the esophagus, can lead to aspiration pneumonia in puppies. If you use this method, proceed correctly to prevent another infectious episode affecting the lungs:
- Make sure there are no air bubbles in the milk powder;
- Before inserting the tube, take the distance from the mouth to the last rib. Then, put the puppy on its side to do this;
- Slowly slide the tube over your tongue so that it goes down smoothly to the bottom of your throat;
- Keep your thumb and forefinger along your neck to make sure you feel the windpipe and tube.
- Do not hold the puppy by the abdomen after feeding him with the tube.
Step 2. Administer liquid medications carefully
When using the syringe to give a puppy a drug in liquid form by mouth, be aware that it can easily enter the lungs, causing aspiration pneumonia. To prevent this risk during such an operation:
- Hold the puppy's head in the non-dominant hand and the syringe in the dominant one;
- Place the syringe in the puppy's mouth at an angle to the side. Do not aim it at the back of your throat, or the drug could drain into your lungs.
- Slowly empty the syringe. Pour a few drops into the mouth at a time so that the puppy has time to swallow and breathe.
Step 3. Correct the cleft palate
If your pooch has cleft palate, he or she will likely need surgery to avoid further episodes of aspiration pneumonia. During the surgery, the vet will close the slit at the top of the mouth, reducing the chance of liquids or food particles entering the lungs.
- This surgery may also be necessary if the puppy has inhaled a foreign body, which has subsequently entered the lungs.
- If you decide to have him undergo an operation, the vet will take special precautions to ensure that the patient does not accidentally breathe anything before he is fully awakened from the anesthesia.
- The surgery can be expensive. If you are having financial problems, discuss with your vet when deciding whether to have your dog undergo this surgical procedure.
Advice
Puppies may be born with congenital conditions that predispose them to aspiration pneumonia. In addition to megaesophagus syndrome and cleft palate, persistence of the right aortic arch (vascular anomaly that causes compression of the esophagus) is also a potential cause
Warnings
- Treatment of aspiration pneumonia can be very expensive.
- There is a risk that bacterial infections caused by aspiration pneumonia will be fatal to puppies.
- The prognosis of aspiration pneumonia could be poor, despite treatment.
