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Peer-reviewed veterinary case report

Survival rates and outlook for dogs with dilated cardiomyopathy

By Tidholm, A et al.·Published in Journal of the American Animal Hospital Association·1997·Albano Animal Hospital of Stockholm (Tidholm)·View original on PubMed

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Original publication title: Survival and prognostic factors in 189 dogs with dilated cardiomyopathy.

Species:
dog

Plain-English summary

A group of 189 dogs with congestive heart failure due to dilated cardiomyopathy (DCM) was studied to understand their survival chances. Unfortunately, the overall outlook was not good, with only 17.5% surviving for one year and just 7.5% for two years. Factors that seemed to influence survival included the age when symptoms first appeared, as well as the presence of breathing problems and fluid buildup in the abdomen. This means that predicting how long a dog with DCM might live can be quite challenging.

People also search for: dog congestive heart failure prognosis · dilated cardiomyopathy survival rate · dog breathing problems treatment

Abstract

A survival analysis was performed using the case records of 189 dogs, including 38 breeds, with congestive heart failure caused by dilated cardiomyopathy (DCM). Overall prognosis was poor, with survival rates of 17.5% at one year and 7.5% at two years. Prognosis in the individual case of DCM proved to be difficult to predict at the time of initial examination. Only three of 27 tested independent predictors of survival were identified. The most significant predictive variables were age at onset of clinical signs, followed by dyspnea and ascites (as noted on the physical examination).

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Original publication on PubMed: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/9204475/