Preoperative screening thoracic radiographs yield few significant abnormalities in dogs with no history or exam findings suggestive of thoracic disease.

Objective: To evaluate the utility of routine preanesthetic screening thoracic radiographs in dogs without a specific clinical indication for this test.

Methods: All patients presented for elective tibial plateau leveling osteotomy between January 1, 2022, and December 31, 2022, were enrolled if there were no clinical signs or history of neoplasia or cardiopulmonary or thoracic disease. Three-view thoracic radiographic studies were performed and evaluated by the attending surgeon and a board-certified veterinary radiologist. The incidence of radiographic abnormalities and agreement between the attending clinician and the radiologist were analyzed.

Results: Of the 281 cases evaluated in this study, 10 (3.6%) were found to have radiographic abnormalities that were likely to affect the clinician's decision to proceed with elective surgery. There was no association between patient age and the probability of diagnosing a significant radiographic abnormality. There was poor agreement between the findings of the clinician and radiologist for cardiovascular and pulmonary abnormalities. There was slight agreement between the findings of the clinician and the radiologist for extrathoracic abnormalities.

Conclusions: Our data suggest that the utility of preoperative screening thoracic radiographs in dogs with no specific clinical indications for this test appears to be low. Given the poor agreement between clinician and radiologist findings, clinicians should consider routine evaluation of thoracic radiographs by a radiologist.

Clinical relevance: These findings should be considered by a clinician when deciding whether to recommend thoracic radiographs as a screening tool for a patient without history or physical examination findings suggestive of intrathoracic disease.