Evaluation of C-reactive protein, haptoglobin and cardiac troponin 1 levels in brachycephalic dogs with upper airway obstructive syndrome

Brachycephalic dogs have unique upper respiratory anatomy with abnormal breathing patterns similar to those in humans with obstructive sleep apnea syndrome (OSAS). The objective of this study was to evaluate the correlation between anatomical components, clinical signs and several biomarkers, used to determine systemic inflammation and myocardial damage (C-reactive protein, CRP; Haptoglobin, Hp; cardiac troponin I, cTnI), in dogs with brachycephalic upper airway obstructive syndrome (BAOS). Fifty brachycephalic dogs were included in the study and the following information was studied: signalment, clinical signs, thoracic radiographs, blood work, ECG, components of BAOS, and CRP, Hp and cTnI levels. A high proportion of dogs with BAOS (88%) had gastrointestinal signs. The prevalence of anatomic components of BAOS was: elongated soft palate (100%), stenotic nares (96%), everted laryngeal saccules (32%) and tracheal hypoplasia (29.1%). Increased serum levels of biomarkers were found in a variable proportion of dogs: 14% (7/50) had values of CRP > 20 mg/L, 22.9% (11/48) had values of Hp > 3 g/L and 47.8% (22/46) had levels of cTnI > 0.05 ng/dl. Dogs with everted laryngeal saccules had more severe respiratory signs (p