Peer-reviewed veterinary case report
Dog died suddenly from coronary arteriosclerosis and heart muscle loss
By Williams, K J·Published in Veterinary pathology·2003·Department of Pathobiology and Diagnostic Investigation, United States·View original on PubMed →
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Original publication title: Coronary arteriosclerosis with myocardial atrophy in a 13-year-old dog.
- Species:
- dog
Plain-English summary
A 13-year-old German Shepherd suddenly died, and a necropsy revealed serious heart issues. The examination showed thinning of the heart muscle and irregularities in the coronary arteries, which supply blood to the heart. These problems likely caused insufficient blood flow to the heart, leading to gradual weakening of the heart muscle without the typical signs of a heart attack. Unfortunately, this condition is uncommon and can lead to sudden death in dogs.
People also search for: sudden death in dogs · heart problems in German Shepherds · dog heart disease symptoms
Abstract
Myocardial ischemia, an uncommon cause of sudden death in dogs, usually results in infarction and fibrosis of the myocardium. Necropsy examination of a 13-year-old German Shepherd dog that died suddenly demonstrated multifocal myocardial thinning and loss in the left and right ventricular free wall and right atrium. Histopathologic examination confirmed the myocardial thinning to be sites of myocyte atrophy and loss, with loose reticulin-positive fibrovascular tissue and adipocytes and little fibrosis. Many intramural coronary arteries were irregularly thickened and partially occluded by segmental intimal and medial deposits of periodic acid-Schiff-positive, Congo red-negative amorphous extracellular material. This finding is consistent with hyaline arteriosclerosis. These vascular lesions likely lead to insufficient perfusion of the affected myocardium and gradual loss of myofibers without the acute necrosis and fibrosis characteristic of infarction.
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Search related cases →Original publication on PubMed: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/14608024/