Peer-reviewed veterinary case report
Pulmonary hypertension in dogs with breathing problems signs
By Jaffey, J A et al.Ā·Published in Veterinary journal (London, England : 1997)Ā·2019Ā·Department of Veterinary Medicine and Surgery, United StatesĀ·View original on PubMed ā
PetCaseFinder translated the abstract of this peer-reviewed paper into plain English so pet owners can read it. We do not publish original research ā every detail traces back to the citation above. How we work ā
Original publication title: Pulmonary hypertension secondary to respiratory disease and/or hypoxia in dogs: Clinical features, diagnostic testing and survival.
- Species:
- dog
Plain-English summary
A group of 47 dogs with breathing problems and pulmonary hypertension (high blood pressure in the lungs) were studied to understand their symptoms and survival. Common issues included chronic airway diseases and lung infections, diagnosed through various imaging and testing methods. The dogs with more severe pulmonary hypertension had a much shorter survival time, averaging only 9 days, compared to those with less severe cases who lived longer. Treatment with a specific medication called a phosphodiesterase-5 (PDE5) inhibitor was found to significantly improve survival chances.
People also search for: dog breathing problems Ā· pulmonary hypertension treatment in dogs Ā· PDE5 inhibitors for dogs
Abstract
Pulmonary hypertension (PH) is associated with substantial morbidity and if untreated, mortality. The human classification of PH is based on pathological, hemodynamic characteristics, and therapeutic approaches. Despite being a leading cause of PH, little is known about dogs with respiratory disease and/or hypoxia (RD/H)-associated PH. Therefore, our objectives were to retrospectively describe clinical features, diagnostic evaluations, final diagnoses and identify prognostic variables in dogs with RD/H and PH. In 47 dogs identified with RD/H and PH, chronic airway obstructive disorders, bronchiectasis, bronchiolar disease, emphysema, pulmonary fibrosis, neoplasia and other parenchymal disorders were identified using thoracic radiography, computed tomography, fluoroscopy, tracheobronchoscopy, bronchoalveolar lavage, and histopathology. PH was diagnosed using transthoracic echocardiography. Overall median survival was 276.0 days (SE, 95% CI; 216, 0-699 days). Dogs with an estimated systolic pulmonary arterial pressure (sPAP) ≥47mmHg (n=21; 9 days; 95% CI, 0-85 days) had significantly shorter survival times than those <47mmHg (n=16; P=0.001). Estimated sPAP at a cutoff of ≥47mmHg was a fair predictor of non-survival with sensitivity of 0.78 (95% CI, 0.52-0.94) and specificity of 0.63 (95% CI, 0.38-0.84). Phosphodiesterase-5 (PDE5) inhibitor administration was the sole independent predictor of survival in a multivariable analysis (hazard ratio: 4.0, P=0.02). Canine PH is present in a diverse spectrum of respiratory diseases, most commonly obstructive disorders. Similar to people, severity of PH is prognostic in dogs with RD/H and PDE5 inhibition could be a viable therapy to improve outcome.
Find similar cases for your pet
PetCaseFinder finds other peer-reviewed reports of pets with the same symptoms, plus a plain-English summary of what was tried across them.
Search related cases āOriginal publication on PubMed: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/31492386/