The history and the physical, radiographic, electrocardiographic, echocardiographic, haemo‐dynamic and angiocardiographic findings from 18 cats with idiopathic hypertrophic cardiomyopathy are described. These data document a diverse spectrum of clinical manifestations of this disease in cats. The variety and complexity of feline hypertrophic cardiomyopathy complicate the diagnosis and challenge the idea that this disorder is a single disease entity.
To determine the efficacy of and clinical response to several pharmacologic agents for treatment of idiopathic hypertrophic cardiomyopathy in cats, 17 symptomatic cats were randomized to treatment with either propranolol, diltiazem, or verapamil. Clinical, laboratory, radiographic, electrocardiographic, and echocardiographic data were obtained before treatment and after 3 and 6 months of chronic oral therapy.Too few of the cats receiving propranolol or verapamil survived long enough to obtain long-term data needed to make statistical comparisons between groups. However, all 12 cats ultimately treated with diltiazem became asymptomatic, and no adverse effects from this drug were noted in any of these cats. Treatment with diltiazem was associated with a significant reduction of pulmonary congestion assessed radiographically (P < 0.01), and improved ventricular filling based on echocardiographic measurements of left atrial size (P < 0.05), left ventricular internal diastolic dimension (P < 0.05), and relaxation time index (P < 0.001). There was also a drug-related improvement in jugular venous oxygen tension (P PRIMARY HYPERTROPHIC CARDIOMYOPATHY (HCM) is a common cause of heart failure and sudden death in cats. The disease is characterized by a hypertrophied, nondilated left ventricle with subsequent resistance to diastolic filling. Impaired diastolic function may result in increased left ventricular filling pressures, pulmonary edema, and dyspnea as well as inadequate cardiac output, fatigue, lethargy, and sudden death. Currently, a recommended treatment for feline HCM is beta-adrenergic blockade, usually with propranolol, as well as cautious use of diuretics to control pulmonary congestion.' However, the response to propranolol in
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