Peer-reviewed veterinary case report
How well dog owners follow heart disease medicine plans
By Pelio, D C et al.·Published in Journal of veterinary cardiology : the official journal of the European Society of Veterinary Cardiology·2021·Veterinary Specialty and Emergency Center Thousand Oaks, United States·View original on PubMed →
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Original publication title: Evaluation of owner medication adherence for canine cardiovascular disease in the referral setting.
- Species:
- dog
Plain-English summary
A survey of dog owners at a specialty veterinary clinic found that many were managing their pets' heart disease, with myxomatous mitral valve disease being the most common issue. Most owners reported they could give their dogs up to three medications daily, but nearly half found it challenging to administer medications twice a day. While most owners were good about giving their pets their heart medications, some occasionally missed doses. This suggests that veterinarians should consider how many medications a dog needs when creating treatment plans for heart disease.
People also search for: dog heart disease medication adherence · myxomatous mitral valve disease in dogs · how to give multiple medications to dogs
Abstract
OBJECTIVE: To evaluate owners' medication adherence for management of cardiovascular disease in the small animal specialty setting. ANIMALS, MATERIALS, AND METHODS: A questionnaire-based study of owners at a single, multispecialty, small animal referral center was conducted. Owners completed a written survey evaluating demographics, degree of medication adherence, and difficulties encountered for medication adherence. Owners were free to decline participation in the study. RESULTS: Ninety-six questionnaires were completed during the study period. Fifty-four respondents (56.3%) reported treating their pet for over one year for cardiovascular disease, and myxomatous mitral valve disease was the most common diagnosis (76.0%). Twenty-nine (30.2%) respondents felt they could consistently administer a maximum of three medications daily, and 46 (47.9%) respondents reported twice-daily dosing was the highest frequency of administration that could be consistently achieved. Twenty-two respondents (22.9%) reported that their pet required daily medications for at least one other chronic condition besides cardiac disease. Seventeen respondents (17.7%) reported at least occasionally missing medications, although only one (1.0%) reported it was more than 20% of medications per week. CONCLUSIONS: Medication adherence was high in this study population. Almost one-half of owners surveyed reported being unable to consistently administer more than three medications daily, and approximately one-quarter of patients were treated for at least one additional chronic condition requiring daily medications, in addition to cardiac disease. Clinicians should be aware of these factors when determining optimal treatment protocols for the management of cardiovascular disease in dogs.
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Search related cases →Original publication on PubMed: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/34537674/