Peer-reviewed veterinary case report
Two puppies' heart hole closed on its own without treatment
By van de Watering, Anne & Szatmári, Viktor·Published in BMC veterinary research·2022·Department of Clinical Sciences, Netherlands·View original on PubMed →
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Original publication title: Spontaneous closure of an isolated congenital perimembranous ventricular septal defect in two dogs.
- Species:
- dog
Plain-English summary
A 4-month-old Havanese and a 4.5-month-old Chihuahua-Jack Russell mix were both brought in for evaluation of a heart murmur. Both puppies were healthy but had a noticeable murmur due to a small hole in their hearts called a ventricular septal defect. Over time, follow-up exams showed that the murmur had disappeared, and further tests confirmed that the hole had closed on its own. This spontaneous closure happened between 12 to 30 months of age for both dogs, and they are now doing well without any treatment needed.
People also search for: puppy heart murmur · congenital heart defect in dogs · Havanese heart problems · Chihuahua heart murmur treatment
Abstract
BACKGROUND: Though spontaneous closure of isolated congenital ventricular septal defects in humans is very common, it has been rarely reported in dogs. CASE PRESENTATION: A 4 month old Havanese dog and a 4.5 month old Chihuahua x Jack Russell terrier cross were presented for murmur evaluation to the authors' institution. Both puppies were clinically healthy and had a loud systolic murmur on the right hemithorax. Echocardiography in both dogs revealed a small, isolated, restrictive perimembranous congenital ventricular septal defect. No echocardiographic signs of left ventricular volume overload or pulmonary hypertension were present. Re-check auscultation in both dogs revealed the absence of a murmur, and echocardiography showed no flow through the interventricular septum. In the 9 kg Havanese dog and the 4 kg mixed breed dog, spontaneous closure occurred at 13-17 months and 12-30 months, respectively. CONCLUSIONS: In both dogs the spontaneous closure of a congenital perimembranous ventricular septal defect took place in a young adult age. The mechanism of closure remains unclear.
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Search related cases →Original publication on PubMed: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/35505347/