Astro is BREATHING lungs GREAT 2 months post BOAS Laser Surgery thumb

Imagine STRUGGLING to BREATHE 🫁 on a DAILY BASIS ! These adorable SMUSHED faced dog paw (Frenchie’s, Pugs, English Bulldogs, Shih Tzus, & Boxers) all have something in common: they are #BRACHYCEPHALIC BREEDS

These breeds possess the flat face, pushed-up nose, narrow nostrils, & large see

Unfortunately, because of this peculiar anatomy, brachycephalic dogs often have a hard time breathing & have respiratory lungs abnormalities.

This condition is known as brachycephalic syndrome & it is characterized by index pointing or more of the following:

An elongated soft palate
Stenotic nares
Everted Laryngeal Saccules
A narrow trachea
Ever notice that Bulldogs do a lot of Zzz snorting? That’s probably due to an elongated soft palate.

The soft palate is the soft part at the back of the roof of the mouth that separates the nasal passages from the mouth. In brachcephalic breeds, the soft palate extends into the throat & can block the trachea/windpipe.

Lots of barking & panting causes the tissues to swell which leads to breathing problems & respiratory distress. To help correct this problem the elongated soft palate is surgically corrected.

Stenotic nares refers to narrowing of the nostrils. This limits the airflow, making breathing through the nose difficult. When the nostrils are narrow corrective surgery helps patients breathe better.

Some dogs have only a partial improvement of their symptoms & can have ongoing snoring & heat intolerance.

A small % will have no improvement in snoring, or recurrence of snoring within 6-12 months of surgery.

Even with airway surgery, BOAS is a progressive condition, as there is only a certain # of things that we can address surgically.

Short noses, large tongues, redundant pharyngeal muscosa, laryngeal collapse & hypoplastic trachea can’t be surgically corrected.