Peer-reviewed veterinary case report
Implantation of a dual-chamber, rate-adaptive pacemaker in a horse with suspected sick sinus syndrome.
- Journal:
- The Veterinary record
- Year:
- 2002
- Authors:
- van Loon, G et al.
- Affiliation:
- Department of Large Animal Internal Medicine
- Species:
- horse
Plain-English summary
A five-year-old male horse experienced fainting spells after exercising. A special heart monitor showed that his heart rhythm was pausing for up to 10 seconds, which suggested a problem with the part of the heart that controls its rhythm. To fix this, veterinarians implanted a special device called a dual-chamber, rate-adaptive pacemaker, which helped keep his heart rate steady after exercise. Thanks to this treatment, the horse was able to return to work without experiencing fainting again.
Abstract
A five-year-old gelding suffered syncope at the end of a period of exercise. A 24-hour electrocardiogram recording revealed intermittent pauses in the sinus rhythm of up to 10 seconds, indicating sinus node disease; the pauses occurred repeatedly, particularly after exercise. A dual-chamber, rate-adaptive pacemaker was successfully implanted, which prevented excessive postexercise bradycardia and syncope, and allowed the horse to return to work.
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Search related cases →Original publication: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/12448492/