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Bile Peritonitis in Dogs

Bile is a bitter fluid secreted by the liver and released into the gallbladder, to be stored until is is released into the duodenum -- the small intestine -- after a meal is taken. Bile is an essential component in digestion, emulsifying the fats in food, thereby aiding in their absorption in the small intestine.

Under abnormal circumstances, however, bile can be released into the abdominal cavity, irritating the organ and causing inflammation. This may occur after injury, infection of the gallbladder, swelling of the gallbladder, blockage of the gallbladder’s ducts, or bile leakage.

Bile peritonitis is usually the result of a more serious underlying condition. In fact, when caused by an infection, bile peritonitis kills as many as 75 percent of those animals infected with the disease.

Symptoms and Types

Signs can be acute or chronic. However, symptoms for infectious bile peritonitis are generally acute, while those for non-infectious bile peritonitis are long-term. Such symptoms include:

• Abdominal pain
• Loss of energy
• Loss of appetite
• Vomiting
• Diarrhea
• Weight loss
• Abdomen swollen, larger than normal
• Yellow skin and/or yellow whites of eyes
• Collapse (if infectious)
• Fever (if infectious)

Causes

Bile peritonitis is generally caused by inflammation of the gallbladder or an injury that causes the dog's gallbladder to rupture or break. Moreover, inflammation of the gallbladder may be due to infection or a blockage of the gallbladder ducts, which can be caused by:

• Cancer
• Gallstones
• Inflammation of the pancreas (pancreatitis)
• Narrowing (stenosis) of the gallbladder’s ducts

Diagnosis

Your veterinarian will perform a thorough physical exam on your dog, taking into account the background history of symptoms and possible incidents that might have precipitated this condition. A complete blood profile will be conducted as part of a standard exam, including a chemical blood profile, a complete blood count, and a urinalysis.

If your dog is suffering from bile peritonitis, high liver enzymes will be present in the blood chemical profile and bile will be present in the urine. Abdominal x-rays and  ultrasound will enable your veterinarian to visualize the liver and gallbladder area in the course of determining the origin of the bile leakage. Using an ultrasound to guide the process, your veterinarian may take a sample of your dog's liver for biopsy, along with abdominal fluid that is present in the abdominal cavity. These samples will be sent to the laboratory for analysis.