Incidentally detected heart murmurs in dogs and cats: executive summary 2015

Côté, Étienne; Edwards, Nicole; Ettinger, S. J.; Fuentes, VL; MacDonald, Kristin A.; Scansen, Brian A.; Sisson, D. David; Abbott, Jonathan A.

doi:10.1111/jsap.12405

Cited by 2 publications

(1 citation statement)

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“…Stenosis is rarely seen in horses and most pathological systolic or diastolic murmurs are caused by valvular regurgitations or congenital defects [ 1 , 2 ]. This may make linking auscultatory and echocardiographic findings easier than, for example, in dogs, cats or humans, who are commonly affected by valvular stenosis, as the list of common differential diagnoses is shorter [ 3 , 4 , 5 ]. However, evaluating the significance of cardiac auscultatory findings still poses a major challenge, as it can be difficult to assess what cardiac disease is underlying these murmurs, how severe it is and what effect it may have on the performance, safety and life expectancy of the horse [ 1 , 6 ].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Association between Cardiac Auscultation and Echocardiographic Findings in Warmblood Horses

Hövener

Pokar²,

Merle

et al. 2021

Animals

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Heart murmurs are detected frequently when auscultating horses and certain murmurs can usually be linked to specific valvular regurgitations. Limited information exists about the accuracy of these broad rules in warmblood horses and the influence of grade of the regurgitation and dimensional changes on murmur intensity. This study aims to clarify the accuracy of cardiac auscultation in warmblood horses and the influence of the grade of regurgitation and dimensional changes on the loudness of the murmur. In this retrospective study, 822 warmblood horses presented for cardiac examination in a large equine referral center in northern Germany underwent a thorough cardiac auscultation. In total, 653 of these revealed one or more heart murmurs. Most common auscultatory findings were left-sided systolic murmurs (68%) or left-sided diastolic murmurs (15%). On 635 of these horses, an echocardiographic examination was performed, revealing regurgitations of the mitral valve as the most common valvular regurgitation (77%) followed by regurgitations of the aortic valve (23%). Thirty-one percent of horses that underwent echocardiographic examination displayed dimensional changes of one or more compartments of the heart, with the left atrium being most affected (21%), followed by the left ventricle (13%). The main goal of this study was to link certain auscultatory findings with results of the echocardiographic examinations, trying to determine whether auscultation and echocardiography agreed on the valve affected, as well as to find out if loudness of the murmur coincided with grade of regurgitation and presence of dimensional changes. Agreement between auscultation and cardiac ultrasound was substantial (Kappa 0.74) if one or more murmurs and regurgitations were present and almost perfect (Kappa 0.94) if only one murmur and one regurgitation were found. Auscultation was particularly well suited for detection of left-sided systolic and diastolic murmurs, with 87% of left-sided systolic murmurs being caused by a mitral valve regurgitation and 81% of left-sided diastolic murmurs originating from an aortic valve regurgitation. We found a fair agreement between the grade of regurgitation and the respective murmur. Association was particularly good between mild regurgitations and low-grade murmurs, while differentiation between moderate to severe regurgitation based upon the loudness of the murmur was less reliable. Dimensional changes were usually linked to more severe regurgitations and higher-grade murmurs. However, a direct correlation between murmur intensity and the presence or severity of dimensional changes, independent of the grade of valvular regurgitation, could not be established in this cohort of horses.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Association between Cardiac Auscultation and Echocardiographic Findings in Warmblood Horses

Hövener

Pokar²,

Merle

et al. 2021

Animals

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Key considerations in the approach to congenital heart disease in dogs and cats

Saunders

2021

J of Small Animal Practice

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Congenital heart disease is an important subset of all cardiovascular disease in dogs and cats that is present at birth and most often detected in young animals but can be diagnosed in adulthood. The range of abnormalities that can occur during development of the heart is vast incorporating simple and complex defects, varying degrees of severity and clinical presentations that include heart failure and cyanosis. While some defects do not result in morbidity in an individual animal, others cause severe clinical signs and death at a young age. Advances in imaging and expanding treatment options offer increasingly more possibilities in the diagnosis and management of congenital heart disease which is the focus of this review. The objective is to provide a broad overview of current practice and highlight key aspects to guide practitioners in their approach to congenital heart disease diagnosis and knowledge of available treatment options.

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Incidentally detected heart murmurs in dogs and cats: executive summary 2015

Cited by 2 publications

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Association between Cardiac Auscultation and Echocardiographic Findings in Warmblood Horses

Association between Cardiac Auscultation and Echocardiographic Findings in Warmblood Horses

Key considerations in the approach to congenital heart disease in dogs and cats

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