Peer-reviewed veterinary case report
Right auricle aneurysm causing collapse and cough in two dogs
By Schwarz, Tobias et al.·Published in Journal of the American Veterinary Medical Association·2005·Department of Clinical Studies, United States·View original on PubMed →
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Original publication title: Aneurysmal dilatation of the right auricle in two dogs.
- Species:
- dog
Plain-English summary
An 8-year-old male Golden Retriever collapsed during exercise and was found to have an irregular heartbeat. Further tests showed that his heart's right auricle (a part of the heart) was enlarged. Meanwhile, a 12.5-year-old female Lhasa Apso was coughing and had a heart murmur, but her heart appeared normal on ultrasound. Both dogs underwent imaging that confirmed the enlargement of the right auricle. The Golden Retriever had surgery, which revealed a defect in the heart's protective layer allowing part of the heart to bulge out. After treatment, the Golden Retriever's condition was addressed, but the Lhasa Apso's issue remained unclear.
People also search for: dog heart murmur treatment · Golden Retriever collapse during exercise · enlarged heart auricle in dogs
Abstract
An 8-year-old sexually intact male Golden Retriever with a history of collapse during exercise underwent an examination during which tachydysrhythmia was identified. At another institution, a 12.5-year-old spayed female Lhasa Apso was referred because of a cough and for evaluation of a heart murmur. In the Golden Retriever, radiographic examination revealed bulging of the craniodorsal aspect of the cardiac silhouette and echocardiography revealed right atrial dilatation. In the Lhasa Apso, a cranial mediastinal mass was suspected on the basis of radiographic findings, but no abnormalities were detected echocardiographically. In both dogs, nonselective angiography and contrast-enhanced computed tomography revealed a markedly enlarged, thin-walled right auricle. Exploratory thoracotomy in the Golden Retriever revealed a defect in the pericardium through which the right auricle and part of the atrium had herniated. In dogs, a right auricular aneurysm should be considered in differential diagnoses of a cranial mediastinal mass (detected radiographically) adjacent to the cardiac silhouette.
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Search related cases →Original publication on PubMed: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/15882002/