Veterinary Clinical Medicine-I (General and Systemic)

TREATMENT 

• Feeding in upright position (45–90° angle to the floor) and maintaining position for 10–15 min following feeding
• Feeding a gruel reduces regurgitation
• Patients with severe regurgitation are fed via gastrotomy tube
• There is risk of aspiration pneumonia
• Surgery may be necessary to remove esophageal foreign bodies or neoplasia or correct vascular ring anomalies
•  No drugs are commonly used to treat megaosophagus alone
• Treatment directed at the underlying disease or associated conditions (e.g., aspiration pneumonia)
• Sucralfate (0.5–1.0 g/dog PO q8h), H₂ blockers (e.g., famotidine 0.5 mg/kg PO q12–24h in dogs) or omeprazole (0.7 mg/kg PO q24h in dogs) can be used if reflux esophagitis is present
• Metoclopramide (0.2–0.5 mg/kg PO q6–8h in dogs)
• Broad-spectrum antibiotics—necessary for patients with aspiration pneumonia
• Immunosuppressive agents for immune-mediated diseases
• Prednisone and acetylcholinesterase inhibitors (pyridostigmine) are used to treat myasthenia gravis
• Cisapride (0.1–0.5 mg/kg PO q8–12h in dogs)