Rhinoscopy

Nasal endoscopy, or rhinoscopy, is a procedure used to examine the inside of your cat’s nasal cavity and sometimes the sinuses. Our feline veterinarians insert an endoscope (a long tube with a camera and a light) into the back of your cat’s nose through its mouth and also up into its nose. The camera captures video images and projects them onto a screen.

Rhinoscopy is recommended to investigate a cat with chronic sneezing and nasal discharge. It is used to identify rhinosinusitis (nasal and sinus inflammation or infection), nasal polyps, nasal cancer and fungal infections. It is also used to remove foreign objects such as grass, seeds or even insects!

CT imaging and rhinoscopy complement each other very well and give us the full clinical picture of what is happening in your cat’s nose and sinus cavities. A CT scan gives us detailed anatomic information about the structure of these areas, but we cannot reach all of these areas (such as the sinus) in cats due to their size. Sometimes, areas of disease are only seen on CT. Rhinoscopy allows your veterinarian to evaluate the nose from the inside and obtain samples for testing. It also allows the removal of foreign bodies if they have been identified. We will discuss with you at your cat’s appointment whether we think a CT scan will be beneficial.

• Rhinoscopy is always performed under anaesthesia. This is to keep your cat still and to protect its lungs from the fluid used to flush its nose during the procedure.
• Once your cat is under anaesthetic, it is positioned to keep its head still while we use soft, flexible endoscopy cameras to examine the inside of its mouth and the back of its throat.
• Images are obtained, and any abnormal areas are identified. This is also where many foreign bodies tend to get stuck.
• We then change to a rigid camera inserted into their nostrils. We examine the inside of your cat’s nose and take biopsies of the nasal tissue for histopathology (examining the types of cells) and culture (growing bacteria or fungus).
• While the rigid camera is inside your cat’s nose, a saline flush is running, which helps clear discharge. Cats with very snotty noses often feel better after the procedure, as it clears everything out.

Rhinoscopy shouldn’t hurt, although sometimes there can be some bleeding from the biopsy sites, and cats may sneeze a little more. These symptoms usually resolve on their own in one or two days.

In most cases, rhinoscopy takes about 30-45 minutes to complete.

In general, rhinoscopy is very safe. Adverse reactions can occur related to the anaesthetic (if the patient has other airway-related problems) or if the disease has spread from the nose to the brain (e.g., cryptococcus fungal infections). CT can be important in helping to identify these changes. We will discuss with you whether your cat has any additional risk factors.

Your feline veterinarian will discuss the results with you on the day. Biopsy results are typically received within 72 hours.

In cats that are otherwise well, rhinoscopy is generally a day procedure, and your cat can go home the same day.