Chronic vomiting or weight loss can be frustrating to manage. Gastroscopy allows the vets at Gippsland Veterinary Hospital to pass a camera into the stomach and small intestine to visualize ulcers or inflammation directly. It is the gold standard for diagnosing Inflammatory Bowel Disease.
About this Service...
Just a few common questions about Gastroscopy. If there is something else you need to know just ask in the Contact Us form below!
They are different tools. Ultrasound is great for looking at the layers of the wall and the lymph nodes around the gut. Gastroscopy is better for looking at the surface (mucosa) and, crucially, it is the only non-surgical way to get a biopsy. We often use them together.
Discomfort is minimal. Unlike an “exploratory laparotomy” (opening the tummy surgically), there are no stitches and no healing abdominal wound. The biopsy sites are tiny (the size of a pinhead) and heal within 24 hours.
We can tell you what we saw (e.g., “The stomach looked red”) immediately. However, the biopsy results from the lab usually take 3 to 5 business days. One of our Maffra staff will call you as soon as they arrive to discuss the long-term treatment plan.
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