Su-Jin An ¹ Young Joo Kim ² Il-Hwa Hong ¹ Dong-In Jung ^1*

• ¹ College of Veterinary Medicine, Gyeongsang National University, Jinju, Republic of Korea
• ² College of Veterinary Medicine, Western University of Health Sciences, Pomona, United States

We assessed corn oil's oral effectiveness in detecting small bowel changes in healthy dogs through ultrasonography, endoscopy, and histopathology. We hypothesize that corn oil ingestion will not significantly increase the visibility of lymphatics and lacteals in healthy dogs. Pure fat consumption is used for diagnosing lymphangiectasia, but recent findings have shown mucosal changes in normal dogs post-fat intake, raising questions about test accuracy. We assessed corn oil's oral effectiveness in detecting small bowel lesions in healthy dogs through ultrasonography, endoscopy, and histopathology. We theorized that corn oil wouldn't increase lymphatics and lacteals visibility in healthy dogs and that a low dosage might pinpoint pathological conditions. Methods: Five healthy male beagles Five male beagles were studied under institutional guidelines. The small intestine's mucosal changes were observed post corn oil consumption (0.5 mL/kg) at various time intervals using ultrasonography, endoscopy, and histopathology. Ultrasonography was employed in real-time, and mucosal echogenicity scores were assigned at multiple time points. Endoscopic and capsule endoscopic examinations were conducted weekly at different intervals post oil consumption, with biopsy samples taken from the duodenal and ileal mucosa for histopathological evaluations. Results: Ultrasonographic evaluations showed no pathological conditions in any dog. While conventional endoscopic evaluations reflected normal variation, capsule endoscopy revealed significant duodenal and jejunal mucosal changes 3 hours post-ingestion, but not in the ileum. Histopathological evaluation indicated a transient rise in the dilation of ileum villi 3 hours postingestion, reducing by 12 hours. Conclusions: In conclusion, this study demonstrated that the observed physiological changes in the small intestinal mucosa, including lymphatic dilation, hyperechoic speckles, and stripes, were within the normal range after oil ingestion in healthy Beagle dogs.The study affirms the potential of pure fat consumption as a diagnostic technique to differentiate between healthy dogs and those with lymphangiectasia. However, transient intestinal villi dilation post corn oil consumption necessitates careful test timing for accurate results.