Effect of Laparotomy on the Swallow–Breathing Relationship in the Cat

Swallow occurs predominantly in the expiratory phase (E) of breathing. This phase preference is thought to contribute to airway protection by limiting the passage of material through the pharyngeal airway with little or no inspiratory (I) airflow. This phase preference is attributed to central interactions between the swallow and breathing pattern generators. We speculated that changes in peripheral mechanical factors would influence the respiratory phase preference for swallow initiation. We induced swallowing in anesthetized spontaneously breathing cats by injection of water into the oropharynx. In animals with intact abdomens, 83 % of swallows were initiated during E, 7 % during I, 7 % during E–I phase transition, and 3 % during I–E transition. In animals with open anterior midline laparotomy, only 38 % of swallows were initiated during E, 33 % during I, 17 % during the E–I transition, and 12 % during I–E. The results support an important role for feedback from somatic and/or visceral thoraco-abdominal mechanoreceptors for swallow–breathing coordination after laparotomy.