Peer-reviewed veterinary case report
Congenital heart muscle tumor found in right atrium of dog
By Machida, N et al.·Published in Journal of comparative pathology·2002·Department of Veterinary Pathology, Japan·View original on PubMed →
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Original publication title: Myocardial hamartoma of the right atrium in a dog.
- Species:
- dog
Plain-English summary
An 8-year-old dog was found to have a heart growth called a myocardial hamartoma in the right atrium after it sadly passed away from pneumonia. During the examination, veterinarians discovered a firm, dark-brown mass in the heart that was made up of disorganized heart muscle cells but did not invade surrounding tissues. This type of growth is believed to be congenital, meaning it was present from birth. This case is notable as it is the first report of such a heart condition in animals other than humans.
People also search for: dog heart growth symptoms · dog pneumonia treatment · congenital heart problems in dogs
Abstract
A myocardial hamartoma of the right atrium is described in an 8-year-old dog that died from pneumonia. At necropsy, a firm, mottled, dark-brown right atrial appendage, of normal shape but slightly enlarged, was found incidentally. On section, the right atrial appendage was composed of a grey-tan, solid mass. Histological features of the mass were as follows: the component cells were mature cardiac muscle cells; the mass contained all of the components of the normal heart wall (i.e., epicardium, myocardium and endocardium), but the arrangement of the component tissues was disorganized; growth of the mass was non-invasive, and continuity of the component cells with adjacent normal myocardial cells was evident, suggesting a congenital origin. This appears to be the first report of congenital myocardial hamartoma in any animal other than man.
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Search related cases →Original publication on PubMed: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/12443738/