Transcutaneous ultrasonographic characteristics of the canine cervical esophagus

Ultrasound is a readily available imaging modality that allows detailed visualization of the canine esophageal wall. However, in the literature, there are few reports of its use for this purpose. The aim of the present study was to document the sonographic appearance and measurements in normal dogs. Seven cadavers and ten healthy live dogs were examined using a 14MHz transducer. Two, four or six wall layers were identified using ultrasound. To the authors’ knowledge, the identification of six layers using ultrasound has not been reported before; this is apparently due to fibrous tissue located between the muscle layers as determined using histology. The mean ultrasonographic wall thickness for the live dogs was 2.8 mm ± 1 mm. These findings support the use of transcutaneous ultrasonography to evaluate the cervical esophagus, but further research is required to determine its use in clinical cases.