Publications

Journal Articles

Book Chapters

Conference Abstracts

MPhil and PhD Theses

Posters

Journal Articles:

Tomlinson F, Liu NC, Sargan DR, Ladlow JF. A cross-sectional study into the prevalence and conformational risk factors across fourteen brachycephalic dog breeds. PLOS One. 2026 Feb 18;21(2);e0340604
Yuen SL, Genain MA, Ladlow JF, Liu NC. Pterygoid bone malformation and its limitations on the effectiveness of brachycephalic airway corrective surgery in brachycephalic dogs. J Small Anim Pract. 2025 Feb;67(2):105–11.
Johnson DA, Liu NC, Ladlow JF. Comparison of short- and long-term objective respiratory outcomes after surgery for brachycephalic obstructive airway syndrome. Vet Surg. 2025;55(1):59–68.
Peng ZH, Ham KM, Ladlow J, Stefaniak C, Jeffery ND, Thieman Mankin KM. Comparison of remote and in-person respiratory function grading of brachycephalic dogs. Vet Surg. 2025;54(3):573–80.
Liu NC, Troconis EL, Sargan DR, Ladlow JF. Breed-specific anatomical risk factors of brachycephalic obstructive airway syndrome: A comprehensive computed tomographic study from nares to cervical trachea. Vet J. 2025 Dec 1;314:106484.
Fitzmaurice M, Adami C, Ladlow J, Tomlinson F, Gittel C. Static respiratory compliance in anaesthetised and intubated brachycephalic dogs with and without brachycephalic obstructive airway syndrome. Vet J. 2025 Aug;312:106372.
Brady E, Herrtage M, Harding I, Ladlow J. Use of ultrasound to estimate tracheal diameter in unclipped brachycephalic dogs: A pilot study. Vet Rec Open. 2025 Dec;12(2):e70018.
Tomlinson F, O’Neill E, Liu NC, Sargan DR, Ladlow JF. BOAS in the Boston Terrier: A healthier screw-tailed breed? PLOS ONE. 2024 Dec 31;19(12):e0315411.
Sharp CAT, Liu NC, Guy A, Ladlow JF. The mobility of the brachycephalic canine nostril in relation to the degree of nostril stenosis. Vet J. 2024 Apr 1;304:106085.
McDonald A, Agarwal A, Williams B, Liu NC, Ladlow J. Neural network analysis of pharyngeal sounds can detect obstructive upper respiratory disease in brachycephalic dogs. PLOS One. 2024;19(8):e0305633.
Filipas MC, Owen L, Adami C. A retrospective observational cohort study on the postoperative respiratory complications and their risk factors in brachycephalic dogs undergoing BOAS surgery: 199 cases (2019-2021). J Small Anim Pract. 2024;65(5):329–37.
Dimopoulou M, Engdahl K, Ladlow J, Andersson G, Hedhammar Å, Skiöldebrand E, et al. The epidemiology of upper respiratory tract disorders in a population of insured Swedish dogs (2011–2014), and its association to brachycephaly. Sci Rep. 2023 May 30;13:8765.
Ladlow J. Brachycephalic obstructive airway syndrome: guide to the respiratory functional grading scheme. In Pract. 2021;43(10):548–55.
Franklin PH, Liu NC, Ladlow JF. Nebulization of epinephrine to reduce the severity of brachycephalic obstructive airway syndrome in dogs. Vet Surg VS. 2021 Jan;50(1):62–70.
Oginska O, Hughes J, Liu N, Ladlow J. An incompletely erupted canine tooth compromising the nasal cavity in a pug presenting with severe brachycephalic obstructive airway syndrome (BOAS. Vet Rec Case Rep Internet [Internet]. 2020 Jul 20; Available from: https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1136/vetreccr-2019-000972
Chan AJ, Liu NC, Ladlow JF. Complication rate and outcomes of laryngeal cuneiformectomy in dogs with advanced laryngeal collapse - Chan - 2025 - Veterinary Surgery - Wiley Online Library. Vet Surg. 2025;54(6):1043–52.
Riggs J, Liu NC, Sutton DR, Sargan D, Ladlow JF. Validation of exercise testing and laryngeal auscultation for grading brachycephalic obstructive airway syndrome in pugs, French bulldogs, and English bulldogs by using whole-body barometric plethysmography. Vet Surg. 2019 Jan 21. doi: 10.1111/vsu.13159.
Hinchliffe TA, Liu N-C, Ladlow J. Sleep-disordered breathing in the Cavalier King Charles spaniel: A case series. Vet Surg. 2018 Dec 28. doi: 10.1111/vsu.13148.
Liu NC, Genain MA, Kalmar L, Sargan DR, Ladlow JF. Objective effectiveness of and indications for laser-assisted turbinectomy in brachycephalic obstructive airway syndrome. Veterinary Surgery. 2018. doi: 10.1111/vsu.13107. [Epub ahead of print]
Ladlow JF, Liu N-C, Kalmar L, Sargan DR. Brachycephalic obstructive airway syndrome. Veterinary Record. 2018;182(13):375-378
Liu NC, Troconis EL, McMillan M, Genain M-A, Kalmar L, Price D, Sargan DR, Ladlow. Endotracheal tube placement during computed tomography of brachycephalic dogs alters upper airway dimensional measurements. Veterinary Radiology & Ultrasound. 2018. doi:10.1111/vru.12590
Liu NC, Troconis EL, Kalmar L, Price DJ, Wright HE, Adams VJ, Sargan DR, Ladlow JF. Conformational risk factors of brachycephalic obstructive airway syndrome (BOAS) in pugs, French bulldogs, and bulldogs. PLoS ONE 2017;12(8):e0181928. [POSTER]
Liu NC, Oechtering GU, Adams VJ, Kalmar L, Sargan DR, Ladlow JF. Outcomes and prognostic factors of surgical treatments for brachycephalic obstructive airway syndrome in 3 breeds. Vet Surg. 2017 Feb;46(2):271-280. doi: 10.1111/vsu.12608.
Salgüero R, Herrtage M, Holmes M, Mannion P, Ladlow JF. Comparison between computed tomographic characteristics of middle ear in nonbrachycephalic and brachycephalic dogs with obstructive airway syndrome. Veterinary Radiology & Ultrasound. 2016;57(2):137-43. doi: 10.1111/vru.12337
Liu N-C, Adams VJ, Kalmar L, Ladlow JF, Sargan DR. Whole-body barometric plethysmography characterizes upper airway obstructions in 3 brachycephalic breeds of dogs. Journal of Veterinary Internal Medicine 2016;30(3): 853-865
Liu N-C, Sargan DR, Adams VJ, Ladlow JF (2015). Characterisation of Brachycephalic Obstructive Airway Syndrome in French Bulldogs Using Whole-Body Barometric Plethysmography. PLoS One 2015;10(6): e0130741.

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Book Chapters

In Health and Welfare of Brachycephalic (Flat-Faced). Companion Animals Eds Dr R Packer and Dr D O’Neill, CRC Press, 2021

Chapter 8. The genetics of brachycephaly, population genetics and current health testing for brachycephalic breeds. David Sargan
Chapter 10. Brachycephalic Obstructive Airway Syndrome (BOAS) – Clinical assessment and decision making. Jane Ladlow and Nai-Chieh Liu
Chapter 17. Obesity and weight management of brachycephalic breeds. Eleanor Raffan.
Liu N-C, McMillan M, Ladlow JF. Effectiveness and objective indications for laser- assisted turbinectomy in treating brachycephalic obstructive airway syndrome. 26th European College of Veterinary Surgeons (ECVS) Annual Scientific Meeting; 2017 July; Edinburgh, UK.

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Conference Abstracts:

Tomlinson F, Genain MA, Sargan DR, Ladlow JF. Tracheal abnormalities in brachycephalic dog breeds. Companion Animal Genetic Health (CAGH) Conference; 2025 December, Cambridge, UK.
Tomlinson F, Neill EO, Liu N-C, Sargan DR, Ladlow JF. BOAS in the Boston Terrier: Similarities to and differences from the bulldog breeds. Universities Federation for Animal Welfare (UFAW) Conference; 2025 June, Online, International.
Chambers S, Ladlow JF, Poyade M. Decoding BOAS: Morphofunctional relationships in brachycephalic dogs through 3D technology. British Small Animal Veterinary Association (BSAVA) Annual Congress; 2025 March; Manchester, UK.
Johnson D, Liu N-C, Ladlow JF. Long term outcome of multi-level surgery for brachycephalic obstructive airway syndrome. British Small Animal Veterinary Association (BSAVA) Annual Congress; 2024 March; Manchester, UK.
Tomlinson F, Sargan DR, Ladlow JF. Using Respiratory Function Grading (RFG) as a tool to assess the prevalence of BOAS in more brachycephalic breeds. British Small Animal Veterinary Association (BSAVA) Annual Congress; 2024 March; Manchester, UK.
Yuen LS, Genain MA, Ladlow JF, Liu N-C. Effect of pterygoid bone medialisation on nasopharyngeal narrowing and surgical outcome in dogs with brachycephalic obstructive airway syndrome. British Small Animal Veterinary Association (BSAVA) Annual Congress; 2022 March; Manchester, UK.
Taylor AM, Hughes J, Alger L, Genain MA, Ladlow JF, Liu N-C. A restrospective study investigating the association between cranial bronchial narrowing and thoracic conformation in brachycephalic dogs using computed tomography. British Small Animal Veterinary Association (BSAVA) Annual Congress; 2022 March; Manchester, UK.
Hinchliffe TA, Liu N-C, Ladlow JF. Sleep disordered breathing in the Cavalier King Charles Spaniel: a case series. 61st British Small Animal Veterinary Association (BSAVA) Annual Congress; 2018 April; Birmingham, UK.
Liu N-C, McMillan M, Ladlow JF. Effectiveness and objective indications for laser- assisted turbinectomy in treating brachycephalic obstructive airway syndrome. 26th European College of Veterinary Surgeons (ECVS) Annual Scientific Meeting; 2017 July; Edinburgh, UK.
Riggs J, Liu N-C, Ladlow JF. A comparison of two different types of exercise test for the investigation and clinical grading of upper airway disease severity in brachycephalic dogs. 26th European College of Veterinary Surgons (ECVS) Annual Scientific Meeting; 2017 July; Edinburgh, UK.
Sutton DR, Liu N-C, Price DJ, Ladlow JF. Is Stridor Pre and Post Exercise a Reliable Predictor of Laryngeal Collapse in Brachycephalic Dogs? 26th European College of Veterinary Surgons (ECVS) Annual Scientific Meeting; 2017 July; Edinburgh, UK.
Valen SV, Liu N-C, Ladlow JF. How sensitive is owner perception of improvement post brachycephalic obstructive airway syndrome surgery in comparison to objective assessment? 26th European College of Veterinary Surgons (ECVS) Annual Scientific Meeting; 2017 July; Edinburgh, UK.
Kalmar K, Liu N-C, Troconis E, Wright H, Mellersh C, Ladlow JF, Sargan DR. Breed specific genetic background of brachycephalic obstructive airway syndrome in the pug, French bulldog and English bulldog. 9th International Conference on Canine and Feline genetics and genomics; 2017 May; Minnesota, USA.
Liu N-C, Kalmar L, Troconis E, Adams VJ, Ladlow JF, Sargan DR. Computer directed objective assessment of Brachycephalic Obstructive Airway Syndrome allows improved accuracy in diagnosis and analysis of the condition. Animal Welfare Conference; 2016 June 23, York, UK.
Cronin A, Ladlow JF, Rudorf H. Echolaryngography as a tool to assess laryngeal collapse in brachycephalic dogs. European association of veterinary diagnostic imaging (EAVDI) preBSAVA meeting 2016. April 6; Birmingham, UK.
Ladlow JF & Liu N-C. Turbinectomy of brachycephalic oatients and objective measurement of outcomes of BOAS surgery. What is new and hot in the world of soft tissue surgery. Association of Veterinary Soft Tissue Surgeons (AVSTS) Spring meeting 2016, April 6; Birmingham, UK
Liu N-C, Sargan DR, Adams VJ, Ladlow JF. Using whole-body barometric plethysmography to evaluate the effectiveness of upper airway surgery for brachycephalic obstructive airway syndrome in French bulldogs. Proceeding of the 24^th European College of Veterinary Surgons (ECVS) Annual Scientific Meeting; 2015 July 2-4; Berlin, Germany. p. 201.
Liu N-C, Adams VJ, Sargan DR, Ladlow JF. A novel method for non-invasive respiratory function assessment in dogs with brachycephalic obstructive airway syndrome. Proceeding of the 39^th World Small Animal Veterinary Association (WSAVA) Congress; 2014 September 16-19; Cape Town, South Africa. p. 820.
Liu N-C, Adams VJ, Sargan DR, Ladlow JF. Using whole-body barometric plethysmography to quantify brachycephalic airway function. Proceeding of the American College of Veterinary Internal Medicine (ACVIM) symposium 2014, June 4-7; Nashville, USA.

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MPhil and PhD Theses:

Liu N-C (2017). Novel diagnostic test for brachycephalic obstructive airway syndrome (BOAS) using whole-body barometric plethysmography (WBBP). PhD Thesis, University of Cambridge.
Wright HE (2017). MPhil Thesis, University of Cambridge
Troconis EL (2017). Investigation of Airway Conformation in the Severity of Brachycephalic Obstructive Airway Syndrome. MPhil Thesis, University of Cambridge.

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