In the study presented here, we aimed to describe the epidemiological, clinical and pathological findings of 51 canine cases with histologically-verified diagnoses of primary cardiac hemangiosarcoma (HSA). The medical data for each dog, including signalment, presenting complaints, physical examination findings, results of various diagnostic testing performed and method of treatment, were checked. In addition, all 51 cases were re-examined pathologically. The tumor occurred most frequently in older Golden Retrievers, followed by Maltese dogs and Miniature Dachshunds. Mass lesions of HSA were found more commonly in the right auricle (RAu) (25/51) and right atrium (RA) (21/51), and the RA masses were significantly (P<0.001) larger than the RAu masses. The echocardiographic detection rate of masses in the RAu group (60%; 15/25) was significantly lower than that in the RA group (95%; 20/21). Survival time was significantly (P<0.05) longer for 5 dogs that received adjuvant chemotherapy after tumor resection than for 12 dogs that did not. In this series, the Maltese (9/51) and Miniature Dachshund (7/51), as well as the Golden Retriever, were represented more frequently than other breeds. The lower echocardiographic detection rate of RAu masses compared with RA masses may be related to tumor size and/or location. The significantly longer survival time for dogs receiving adjuvant chemotherapy indicates that postoperative chemotherapy could be useful for dogs with cardiac HSA.

BackgroundCardiac troponin I (cTnI) is useful for assessing hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HCM) in cats.ObjectiveTo measure plasma cTnI concentrations in healthy cats and evaluate the clinical utility of cTnI in determining the severity of HCM.AnimalsClinically healthy cats (n = 88) and cats with HCM (n = 93).MethodsMulticenter prospective study. Cats with HCM, including hypertrophic obstructive cardiomyopathy at various stages, were diagnosed using echocardiography. Plasma cTnI concentrations were analyzed by a commercial laboratory. Receiver‐operating characteristic curve analysis was used to evaluate the accuracy of plasma cTnI concentrations to detect HCM.ResultsThe median cTnI concentration was 0.027 ng/mL (interquartile range, 0.012‐0.048 ng/mL) in healthy cats. Concentrations were significantly higher in diseased cats than in healthy controls, and concentrations were significantly higher in cats with heart failure than in asymptomatic cats. A plasma cTnI concentration of 0.163 ng/mL had a sensitivity of 62.0% and specificity of 100% when used to distinguish normal cats from asymptomatic HCM cats without left atrial dilatation. A cutoff of 0.234 ng/mL had high sensitivity (95.0%) and specificity (77.8%) for assessing heart failure. The areas under the receiver‐operating characteristic curves were 0.85 and 0.93, respectively.Conclusions and Clinical ImportanceIncreased cTnI concentrations reflect the severity of HCM. If other causes of cardiac injury are ruled out, plasma cTnI concentration may be useful for predicting the severity of HCM in cats.

Using multivariate probit analysis, the data of 565 patients who underwent major abdominal surgery were retrospectively analyzed, and the etiologic role of blood transfusion in organ system failure (OSF), which includes respiratory failure, gastrointestinal stress bleeding, renal failure, nonobstructive, nonhepatitic jaundice, and coagulopathy, was studied. Apart from the amount of blood transfusion, the following factors were included in the analysis as possible contributors to OSF: age, preoperative hematocrit, organ failure risk (diffuse peritonitis, obstructive cholangitis, liver cirrhosis, terminal cancer, and hemorrhagic shock), operative time, blood loss, and postoperative highest hematocrit. The results showed that, except for preoperative hematocrit, all the factors are statistically significant contributors, blood transfusion being the most significant. There was no statistically significant interaction between blood transfusion and organ failure risk. It is concluded that blood transfusion is an important, independent factor contributing to OSF, and its contribution cannot be attributed to the underlying conditions that require blood transfusion.

Examination of our necropsy records for the period 2005 to 2014 yielded 41 cases of the endomyocardial form of restrictive cardiomyopathy among 327 cats with evidence of heart disease, and here, we reviewed their epidemiological and clinical features. The medical data obtained retrospectively included signalment, presenting complaints, findings of physical examination, results of various diagnostic tests, methods of treatment and survival times. Except for one Chinchilla Persian cat, all were domestic short-haired cats. The mean age at death was 7.3 ± 4.5 years (median, 6 years; range, 4 months to 19 years), and males accounted for 61% (25/41) of the total. Dyspnea was the most common clinical sign, being evident in 83% (35/41) of the cats. Hind limb paresis or paralysis due to aortic thromboembolism was evident in 41% (17/41). Arrhythmias of atrial origin were common. Echocardiography commonly revealed left atrial or biatrial enlargement with severe endocardial thickening of the left ventricle. Most of the affected cats had a poor outcome; the disease duration ranged from 1 to 977 days, and the median survival period was 30 days.

ABSTRACT. The diagnostic significance of the plasma concentration of N-terminal pro-brain natriuretic peptide (NT-proBNP) was evaluated in 72 dogs with mitral valve insufficiency and 36 control dogs. In the controls, the plasma NT-proBNP concentration was 163.9  114.7 (SD) pmol/l. The values in those with International Small Animal Cardiac Health Council (ISACHC) functional classification of heart failure class Ia, Ib, II and IIIa mitral valve insufficiency were 302.8  257.1 (n=21), 634.2  642.5 (n=23), 1,277.9  756.2 (n=18) and 1,908.9  538.8 (n=10) pmol/l, respectively; those in the class Ib or severer groups were significantly higher than that in the controls. In dogs in which the intensity of cardiac murmurs was Levine 3, 4, 5 and 6, plasma NT-proBNP concentrations were 647.6  577.3 (n=27), 1,184.7  841.0 (n=18), 1,532.4  784.2 (n=10) and 1,461.8  932.2 (n=4) pmol/l, respectively, and were significantly higher than that in the controls. The plasma NT-proBNP concentration was significantly correlated with the cardiac size (VHS) and LA/Ao (r=0.611, n=89, p<0.01; and r=0.705, n=91, p<0.01, respectively). When dogs with ISACHC class II or IIIa were regarded as heart failure, the cut-off value was 713.5 pmol/l, and the sensitivity and specificity were 0.913 and 0.857, respectively. These findings could indicate that plasma NT-proBNP concentration was significantly associated with the severity of heart failure due to mitral valve insufficiency in dogs. Further investigation is required to determine factors other than heart failure affecting plasma NT-proBNP concentration.KEY WORDS: canine, mitral valve insufficiency, NT-pro BNP.