Peer-reviewed veterinary case report
Ventricular pre-excitation diagnosed in an elderly cat
By Sala, G P et al.·Published in Journal of veterinary cardiology : the official journal of the European Society of Veterinary Cardiology·2024·The University of Glasgow Small Animal Hospital, United Kingdom·View original on PubMed →
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Original publication title: Ventricular pre-excitation in an elderly cat.
- Species:
- cat
Plain-English summary
An 18-year-old female Domestic Shorthair cat was brought in for seizure-like episodes, but the vet found no physical or neurological issues during the exam. Tests, including an echocardiogram and an electrocardiogram, showed that her heart was functioning normally, but there was a specific heart rhythm pattern indicating a condition called ventricular pre-excitation. Since the cat didn't show any fast heart rates during monitoring, the vet decided not to start any heart medications. The cat's condition was monitored, and no immediate treatment was necessary.
People also search for: cat seizure-like episodes · elderly cat heart problems · ventricular pre-excitation in cats
Abstract
An 18-year-old female neutered Domestic Shorthair cat was referred for investigation of seizure-like episodes. Physical and neurological examination were unremarkable, as were systemic arterial blood pressure, cardiac troponin I, complete blood count and biochemistry profile. Diagnostic tests included transthoracic echocardiography which ruled out any structural cardiomyopathy, and electrocardiography which showed an underlying regular wide QRS-complex rhythm with pronounced shortening of the PR interval. Considering the findings, a diagnosis of suspected ventricular pre-excitation secondary to an accessory pathway was made. Further investigations were declined and, as no periods of tachycardia were seen on the five-minute electrocardiogram, no antiarrhythmic treatment was started.
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Search related cases →Original publication on PubMed: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/39059142/