BULLOUS EMPHYSEMA IN THE DOG

The present paper refers to a thirteen-year-old Labrador-retriever bitch suffering from highly acute respiratory distress. The chest x-ray indicated multiple roundish shadows bounded by circular densification areas and pneumothorax an the right hand side. The clinical-aetiological diagnosis of a bullous emphysema was established on the basis of clinical x-ray findings and results of laboratory tests. It was confirmed by pathological-anatomical and histological examination. In dogs the ''bullous emphysema'' is a rare pathological change in the lung tissue, usually preceded by obstructive pneumothorax with or without pneumomediastinum to occur in the further course of the disease. The prognosis is guarded to poor, depending on the number and extent of cystic changes.