ABSTRACT
Acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) is a severe inflammatory disorder of the lung that is a common cause of respiratory failure in critically ill dogs and cats. Numerous synonyms exist, including “shock lung,” “traumatic wet lung,” “adult hyaline membrane disease,” and “capillary leak syndrome.” The consensus terminology is that all degrees of this syndrome should be referred to as acute lung injury (ALI), and arbitrarily that the most severe manifestation should be termed ARDS. The inflammation that results in ALI and ARDS may originate in the lung itself due to a direct pulmonary insult, or it may be part of a generalized inflammatory response syndrome. A high index of suspicion should be noted in animals with coagulopathies or those that have developed ARDS following trauma. Pulmonary thromboembolism is a common complication of critical illness in dogs. Pulmonary thromboembolism typically causes hyperlucent lung fields, but severe thromboembolic disease can produce a diffuse alveolar pattern on thoracic radiographs.
