Peer-reviewed veterinary case report
Mitral valve leaflet length linked to heart disease risk in cats
By Seo, J et al.·Published in Journal of veterinary cardiology : the official journal of the European Society of Veterinary Cardiology·2021·School of Veterinary Science, United Kingdom·View original on PubMed →
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Original publication title: Anterior mitral valve leaflet length in cats with hypertrophic cardiomyopathy.
- Species:
- cat
Plain-English summary
A group of 55 healthy cats were monitored over an average of 5.4 years to see if certain heart changes would develop. Researchers found that cats with longer anterior mitral valve leaflets (the part of the heart valve) were more likely to develop hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HCM), a condition where the heart muscle thickens. About 31% of the cats developed HCM during the study, and those that did had significantly longer valve leaflets compared to those that remained healthy. This suggests that measuring the length of this valve could help predict heart issues in cats.
People also search for: cat heart disease symptoms · hypertrophic cardiomyopathy in cats · cat heart valve problems
Abstract
INTRODUCTION: Anterior mitral valve leaflet (AMVL) elongation is a recognised feature of hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HCM). However, whether AMVL elongation precedes left ventricular hypertrophy in cats is currently unknown. The aim of this study was to explore the risk of developing an HCM phenotype in cats with an elongated AMVL. ANIMALS: FIFTY-FIVE APPARENTLY HEALTHY CATS WITH A NORMAL BASELINE ECHOCARDIOGRAM AND A FOLLOW-UP ECHOCARDIOGRAM AT >ONE YEAR. MATERIALS AND METHODS: This was a retrospective longitudinal study. Cats at the baseline were grouped based on whether or not they developed an HCM phenotype at follow-up. AMVL length and left atrial and left ventricular dimensions were measured from two-dimensional images. RESULTS: The median follow-up period of the study population was 5.4 years (25th and 75th quartile, 2.7-6.7 years). During this time, 17 cats (30.9%) developed an HCM phenotype. At the baseline, cats that subsequently developed an HCM phenotype had greater AMVL length (9.4 mm [25th and 75th quartile, 9.0-10.6 mm] vs. 8.5 mm [25th and 75th quartile, 7.6-9.1 mm], P < 0.0001) and maximal left ventricular wall thickness (4.5 mm [25th and 75th quartile, 4.1-4.7 mm] vs. 4.0 mm [25th and 75th quartile, 3.7-4.6 mm], P = 0.007) than those that did not. Multiple logistic regression analysis confirmed that both baseline variables were independent predictors for development of an HCM phenotype. CONCLUSIONS: The AMVL length was greater in cats that subsequently developed left ventricular hypertrophy. Further studies investigating the clinical application of AMVL in the natural history of feline HCM are warranted.
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Search related cases →Original publication on PubMed: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/34610570/