Endoscopy is now widely available for the investigation of gastrointestinal disease in dogs; Franck Jolivet and Olivier Dossin present a practical, case-based paper that illustrates the versatility of the endoscope, along with some useful tips on how to best use this diagnostic option in practice.

There are a variety of disorders that can cause dogs to lose protein through their gastrointestinal tract. Overall, they are classified as “protein-losing enteropathies”, but there are a bewildering number of potential causes; Rance Sellon offers an overview of the condition, including a review of the signs, the diagnostic options and the potential treatments for the most common diseases.

One of the most frequent reasons for cats to be presented to a veterinarian is because of vomiting and/or diarrhea; in this short paper the authors offer some basic statistics on cats that present with typical gastrointestinal signs.  

Inflammation of the feline esophagus is an underdiagnosed condition, yet it can have potentially severe consequences; Toshihiro Watari discusses the predisposing factors, the clinical signs, the imaging modalities required for diagnosis, and the options available to both treat the disease and minimize its recurrence.

Pancreatitis in dogs is a common and debilitating disease that may be acute or chronic in nature; Craig Datz and Melinda Wood review various aspects of the condition, including the etiology, the preferred diagnostic tests, and the options for treatment.

Chronic gastrointestinal disease in cats is often due to either inflammatory bowel disease or intestinal lymphosarcoma, but differentiating between the two can be problematic; Doctors Al-Ghazlat and Eriksson de Rezende offer some pointers for the clinician.

Large intestinal diarrhea is a common complaint in young cats presenting to primary care veterinary practices, and Tritrichomonas foetus is an important differential diagnosis for this condition, as Dan Thompson describes.

The various options now offered by specialist petfood companies for a dog with chronic gastrointestinal disease can be quite baffling, and the clinician may be tempted to reach for the nearest product that claims to be effective for enteric disease. Adam Rudinsky offers some pointers to help the clinician.