Peer-reviewed veterinary case report
Exercise intolerance and heart murmur from lung vein defect in dog
By Thorn, Chloe L et al.·Published in Journal of veterinary cardiology : the official journal of the European Society of Veterinary Cardiology·2017·University of Pennsylvania, United States·View original on PubMed →
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Original publication title: Partial anomalous pulmonary venous connection in a dog.
- Species:
- dog
Plain-English summary
A 2-year-old male Belgian Malinois was brought to the vet because he was having trouble exercising and seemed tired. The vet found a heart murmur and did several tests, including an echocardiogram and X-rays, which showed that his heart was enlarged and there were issues with his blood vessels. Further tests revealed that he had a rare heart condition called partial anomalous pulmonary venous connection, where a pulmonary vein connects to the heart in an abnormal way. The dog was diagnosed with this condition and a possible additional issue with blood flow, which may require ongoing monitoring and treatment.
People also search for: dog exercise intolerance · Belgian Malinois heart murmur · pulmonary vein problems in dogs
Abstract
A 2-year-old male intact Belgian Malinois was presented for exercise intolerance. A grade III/VI left basilar systolic murmur was detected. Echocardiography revealed moderate right atrial and ventricular dilation and increased pulmonic outflow velocity. Thoracic radiographs showed right heart enlargement and a dilated caudal vena cava. In addition, on the left lateral projection, an enlarged aberrant right cranial pulmonary lobar vein was suspected to be diverging ventrally from the course of the right cranial lobar bronchus and inserting more ventrally than normal in the region of the right atrium. A left-to-right pulmonary vascular shunt was suspected, and the patient underwent further diagnostics under general anesthesia. An agitated saline study was positive, suggestive of a concurrent right to left shunt. A right heart catheterization was performed. Angiography was inconclusive. Oximetry testing revealed an increase in oxygen saturation within the right atrium at the level of the caudal cava supportive of a left-to-right shunt in this region. Computed tomography angiography revealed a large single pulmonary vein that anomalously entered into the caudolateral aspect of the right atrium (left-to-right shunt) and was suspicious for a small arteriovenous malformation between the right caudal pulmonary artery and the right pulmonary vein returning to the left atrium (right to left shunt). The patient was diagnosed with a partial anomalous pulmonary venous connection and a possible arteriovenous malformation.
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Search related cases →Original publication on PubMed: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/28887041/