Peer-reviewed veterinary case report
Patent ductus arteriosus in dogs over 5 years old and heart issues
By Boutet, B G et al.·Published in Journal of veterinary internal medicine·2017·Department of Small Animal Clinical Sciences and the Michael E. DeBakey Institute for Comparative Cardiovascular Sciences and Biomedical Devices, United States·View original on PubMed →
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Original publication title: Clinical Characteristics of Adult Dogs More Than 5 Years of Age at Presentation for Patent Ductus Arteriosus.
- Species:
- dog
Plain-English summary
A 7-year-old female dog was diagnosed with a heart condition called patent ductus arteriosus (PDA), which was causing her heart to enlarge and leading to breathing problems. Despite being an older dog, she underwent surgery to close the PDA, which is typically more common in puppies. After the procedure, her heart size improved, and she was able to stop or reduce her heart medication. This case shows that even older dogs can benefit from treatment for PDA, leading to better heart health and quality of life.
People also search for: dog heart problems · patent ductus arteriosus treatment · older dog heart surgery · breathing problems in dogs · heart enlargement in dogs
Abstract
BACKGROUND: The median age at presentation for dogs with patent ductus arteriosus (PDA) is <6 months of age, and closure is associated with a decrease in heart size and increased survival time, which are not well described in older dogs. OBJECTIVES: To describe the clinical characteristics of dogs with PDA ≥5 years of age at the time of presentation to a veterinary referral hospital. ANIMALS: 35 client-owned dogs. METHODS: Retrospective case series. RESULTS: PDA was diagnosed at a median age of 7.4 years (range, 5.1-12.3 years). Females represented 23/35 (65.7%) of the patients. Concurrent heart disease included degenerative mitral valve disease (DMVD; 13), arrhythmias (11), pulmonary hypertension (7), and other congenital defects (2). Cardiomegaly was documented in the majority of dogs consisting of left ventricular enlargement (91%) and left atrial enlargement (86%). Median vertebral heart size in 24 dogs was 12.9 (range, 10.7-18.2). The PDA shunt direction was left-to-right in 33 and bidirectional in 2 dogs. Closure was performed in 26 dogs, including 4 with pulmonary hypertension. In 10 dogs receiving furosemide pre-operatively for management of heart failure, furosemide was discontinued (8) or the dosage decreased (2) at the time of discharge. CONCLUSIONS AND CLINICAL IMPORTANCE: Adult dogs can present with a left-to-right shunting PDA that results in cardiomegaly and clinical signs that can improve or resolve with PDA closure. This improvement is also apparent in dogs with PDA complicated by DMVD. Pulmonary hypertension that does not result in complete right-to-left shunting should not be considered a contraindication to closure.
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Search related cases →Original publication on PubMed: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/28370380/