Peer-reviewed veterinary case report
Is pimobendan safe for cats with blocked vs unblocked heart disease?
By Ward, Jessica L et al.·Published in Journal of veterinary internal medicine·2020·Department of Veterinary Clinical Sciences, United States·View original on PubMed →
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Original publication title: Retrospective evaluation of the safety and tolerability of pimobendan in cats with obstructive vs nonobstructive cardiomyopathy.
- Species:
- cat
Plain-English summary
A group of 260 cats with congestive heart failure (CHF) were treated with a medication called pimobendan to see how well they tolerated it, especially those with obstructive cardiomyopathy (a heart condition that blocks blood flow). The study found that both groups of cats, those with and without the obstruction, experienced very few side effects, and the medication was generally well tolerated. Only a small number of cats had to stop taking pimobendan due to adverse effects, and there were no serious negative reactions detected. Overall, pimobendan appears to be a safe option for cats with CHF, regardless of their specific heart condition.
People also search for: cat heart failure treatment · pimobendan side effects in cats · obstructive cardiomyopathy in cats
Abstract
BACKGROUND: Pimobendan is frequently used off-label for treatments of cats with congestive heart failure (CHF). Concern exists regarding the safety of pimobendan in cats with outflow tract obstruction (OTO). OBJECTIVES: In cats treated with pimobendan, incidence of adverse effects will not differ between cats with OTO vs cats with nonobstructive cardiomyopathy. ANIMALS: Two-hundred sixty cats with CHF (57 with OTO, 203 with nonobstructive disease). METHODS: Retrospective medical record review. Groups were compared using 2-sample t-tests, Wilcoxon rank-sum tests, and Fisher exact tests. RESULTS: Compared to cats with nonobstructive cardiomyopathy, cats with OTO were younger (8.9 [interquartile range (IQR) 6.6] vs 10.8 [6.3] years, P = .0036), more likely to have a heart murmur (51/57 [90%] vs 76/203 [37.8%] cats, P < .0001), more likely to manifest CHF as pulmonary edema (53/57 [83%] vs 144/203 [70.9%] cats, P = .0004), and less likely to have pleural effusion (19/57 [33%] vs 122/203 [60.1%] cats, P = .0005). Adverse effects suspected to be related to pimobendan administration occurred in 12/260 cats (4.6%), including 11/203 cats (5.4%) with nonobstructive cardiomyopathy and 1/57 cat (2%) with OTO (P = .7). Pimobendan was discontinued due to adverse effects in 4/260 cats (1.5%), 3 with nonobstructive disease and 1 with OTO (P = 1.0). Acute adverse hemodynamic effects after pimobendan administration were not detected in any cats. CONCLUSIONS AND CLINICAL IMPORTANCE: Pimobendan is well tolerated in cats with cardiomyopathy and CHF, regardless of the presence of OTO.
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Search related cases →Original publication on PubMed: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/33026124/