Peer-reviewed veterinary case report
Murmur loudness shows heart disease severity in small dogs
By Ljungvall, I et al.·Published in The Journal of small animal practice·2014·Department of Clinical Sciences·View original on PubMed →
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Original publication title: Murmur intensity in small-breed dogs with myxomatous mitral valve disease reflects disease severity.
- Species:
- dog
Plain-English summary
A study looked at small-breed dogs with myxomatous mitral valve disease, a common heart issue, to see if the loudness of their heart murmur could indicate how severe their condition was. They found that dogs with soft murmurs were less likely to have serious heart problems, while those with louder murmurs were more likely to have congestive heart failure or other complications. This means that the intensity of the murmur can help veterinarians assess the severity of heart disease in these dogs. Understanding this can help pet owners know what to expect and how to manage their dog's heart health.
People also search for: dog heart murmur severity · small breed dog heart disease · myxomatous mitral valve disease treatment
Abstract
OBJECTIVES: To determine whether murmur intensity in small-breed dogs with myxomatous mitral valve disease reflects clinical and echocardiographic disease severity. METHODS: Retrospective multi-investigator study. Records of adult dogs Ä20 kg with myxomatous mitral valve disease were examined. Murmur intensity and location were recorded and compared with echocardiographic variables and functional disease status. Murmur intensities in consecutive categories were compared for prevalences of congestive heart failure, pulmonary hypertension and cardiac remodelling. RESULTS: 578 dogs [107 with "soft" (30 Grade I/VI and 77 II/VI), 161 with "moderate" (Grade III/VI), 160 with "loud" (Grade IV/VI) and 150 with "thrilling" (Grade V/VI or VI/VI) murmurs] were studied. No dogs with soft murmurs had congestive heart failure, and 90% had no remodelling. However, 56% of dogs with "moderate", 29% of dogs with "loud" and 8% of dogs with "thrilling" murmurs and subclinical myxomatous mitral valve disease also had no remodelling. Probability of a dog having congestive heart failure or pulmonary hypertension increased with increasing murmur intensity. CLINICAL SIGNIFICANCE: A 4-level murmur grading scheme separated clinically meaningful outcomes in small-breed dogs with myxomatous mitral valve disease. Soft murmurs in small-breed dogs are strongly indicative of subclinical heart disease. Thrilling murmurs are associated with more severe disease. Other murmurs are less informative on an individual basis.
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Search related cases →Original publication on PubMed: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/25213440/