A One Health review of aerodigestive disease in dogs

This review article seeks to define and describe aerodigestive disease in dogs, and review current and emerging methods of diagnostic evaluation. Aspiration of gastric contents into the respiratory tract is associated with the development and progression of numerous respiratory diseases in humans. In veterinary medicine the term “aspiration” is considered synonymous with “aspiration pneumonia” which, while frequently encountered, does not accurately reflect the breadth of aspiration associated respiratory syndromes (AARS). In the clinical veterinary literature, the effect of alimentary dysfunction on respiratory disease and vice versa (aerodigestive disease) is rarely investigated despite evidence in the human literature, animal models, and some studies and case reports linking alimentary and respiratory disease in small animals. Current methods of investigating aerodigestive diseases in veterinary patients are limited by inadeqate sensitivity or specificity, potential for bias, cost, and availability. This necessitates investigations into advanced diagnostics to identify potentially underrecognized animals with AARS. Additionally, similarities in anatomy, physiology, and several disorders between dogs and humans, make experimental and naturally occurring canine models of AARS integral to translational research. Thus, evaluating dogs with aerodigestive disease might represent an area of substantial clinical relevance in human as well as veterinary medicine.