Pulmonary hypertension secondary to chronic mitral valve disease in dogs: prevalence and echocardiographic aspects

Abstract

Objectives: To evaluate the prevalence of pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH) in dogs with mitral valve disease and to determine the correlation between pulmonary arterial pressure (PAP) and certain echocardiographic indexes that reflect the severity of the disease. Materials and methods: A retrospective study of the echocardiographic records of dogs with chronic mitral valve disease. Results: This study evaluated 359 dogs with mitral valve disease. Of these, 89 (24.8%) had some degree of PAH. A total of 59 animals (66.3%) had mild PAH (G2a) with an estimated pulmonary arterial pressure of 43.7 ± 5.9 mmHg. Twenty-five animals (28.1%) had moderate PAH (G2b) with an estimated PAP of 68.2 ± 8.4 mmHg and 5 animals (5.6%) had significant PAH (G2c) with an estimated PAP of 102.2 ± 37.6 mmHg. PAH secondary to mitral valve disease develops in small dogs of older age with progression of valve degeneration and in animals with significant diastolic dysfunction. Statistically significant correlations between systolic pulmonary arterial pressure and the aortic-to-left atrial diameter ratio as well as between systolic pulmonary arterial pressure and the E and A wave of transmitral flow were detected. Conclusion: Our results suggest that these indexes could be used as predictors of PAH.

Pulmonary Hypertension Secondary to Myxomatous Mitral Valve Disease in Dogs: Current Insights into the Histological Manifestation and Its Determining Factors

“…Other symptoms commonly associated with PH are syncope and restlessness. Exercise intolerance, weakness, weight loss, and depression are considered non-specific but associated with PH [1,12,13,[16][17][18][19]. In symptomatic heart failure (stage C according to the American College of Veterinary Internal Medicine, ACVIM), patients with a high probability of PH have a significantly worse prognosis, with a survival time about 2 months shorter compared to patients with a lower probability of PH [16,17,20].…”