Peer-reviewed veterinary case report
Heart protein levels tested in Boxers with arrhythmogenic heart
By Baumwart, Ryan D et al.·Published in American journal of veterinary research·2007·Department of Veterinary Clinical Sciences, United States·View original on PubMed →
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Original publication title: Evaluation of serum cardiac troponin I concentration in Boxers with arrhythmogenic right ventricular cardiomyopathy.
- Species:
- dog
Plain-English summary
A group of 10 Boxers diagnosed with arrhythmogenic right ventricular cardiomyopathy (ARVC) had higher levels of a specific heart protein called cardiac troponin I (cTnI) in their blood compared to healthy Boxers and other breeds. The Boxers with ARVC showed an average cTnI level of 0.142 ng/mL, while healthy Boxers had 0.079 ng/mL and non-Boxers had just 0.023 ng/mL. This suggests that elevated cTnI levels could indicate heart issues in Boxers. Understanding these levels can help veterinarians assess the severity of heart problems in affected dogs.
People also search for: Boxer heart problems · elevated cardiac troponin I in dogs · ARVC in Boxers · Boxer heart disease symptoms
Abstract
OBJECTIVE: To evaluate serum cardiac troponin I (cTnI) concentrations in Boxers with arrhythmogenic right ventricular cardiomyopathy (ARVC), unaffected (control) Boxers, and control non-Boxers. ANIMALS: 10 Boxers with a clinical diagnosis of ARVC defined by > or = 1,000 ventricular premature complexes (VPCs)/24 h on an ambulatory ECG, 10 control Boxers assessed as normal by the presence of < 5 VPCs/24h, and 10 control non-Boxers. PROCEDURES: Serum was extracted from a blood sample from each dog. Analysis of serum cTnI concentrations was performed. RESULTS: Mean +/- SD serum cTnI concentration was 0.142 +/- 0.05 ng/mL for Boxers with ARVC, 0.079 +/- 0.03 ng/mL for control Boxers, and 0.023 +/- 0.01 ng/mL for control non-Boxers. A significant difference in serum cTnI concentrations was observed among the 3 groups. In the combined Boxer population (ie, Boxers with ARVC and control Boxers), a significant correlation was found between serum cTnI concentration and number of VPCs/24 h (r = 0.78) and between serum cTnI concentration and grade of ventricular arrhythmia (r = 0.77). CONCLUSIONS AND CLINICAL RELEVANCE: Compared with clinically normal dogs, Boxers with ARVC had a significant increase in serum cTnI concentration. For Boxers, correlations were found between serum cTnI concentration and number of VPCs/24 h and between concentration and the grade of arrhythmia. Because of the overlap in serum cTnI concentrations in control Boxers and Boxers with ARVC, future studies should evaluate the correlation of serum cTnI concentration with severity of disease in terms of degree of myocardial fibrofatty changes.
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Search related cases →Original publication on PubMed: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/17472453/