Heart Diseases and Breed predisposition

Mitral Insufficiency (MI, MVD): most common heart disease especially in small breed dog during their senior age. Cavalier King Charles are particularly predisposed to this disease, even at young age. The heart valves degenerate and consequently don’t close properly anymore. As a result, heart gets enlarged, and progressively loses its function. The dog starts then to cough and feels more tired.

Dilated Cardiomyopathy (DCM): common disease in Dobermans and in large breed dogs typically after 4 years of age. Heart muscle progressively loses its function and is not being able to pump the blood into the circulation. Blood remains inside the heart that becomes dilated and progressively gets cumulated in the lungs. The dog at this point starts to cough. Arrhythmias are also often present. The prognosis is unfortunately poor despite the medication. Because of that is very important to discover the presence of the disease as early as possible, so to be able to prolong life expectancy and achieve the highest benefit from the treatment.

Sub-Aortic Stenosis (SAS): common congenital heart disease in Boxers and other large breed brachycephalic dogs. The puppies are born with an obstacle to the normal flowing across the aortic valve. In the most severe cases, the heart has to make much bigger effort to pump the blood out in the circulation because of this obstruction. As consequence, the heart muscle thickens and ”eventually this interferes with the pumping chamber’s flexibility and ability to fill”. At this point, arrhythmias are also often present.

Pulmonic Stenosis (PS): congenital disease where the pulmonic valve is affected and does not open properly. Blood remains in the right heart that progressively becomes thickened. Treatment for this disease is medical in moderately affected cases, and surgical in the most severely affected patients.

Patent Ductus Arteriosus (PDA): quite common congenital heart disease where after the birth remains present a communication between the aorta and the pulmonic artery, instead of going through physiological closure. Blood is continuously pumped back into the pulmonic artery and from there into the left heart that becomes progressively bigger and loses its function. Treatment is always surgical.

Tricuspid Dysplasia (TD): uncommon congenital heart disease where the tricuspid valve is abnormally structured since the birth. Usually higher than normal quote of blood remains in the right heart instead of being pumped into the pulmonary circulation, so that the right heart progressively becomes enlarged and loses its function. Treatment is always medical.

Right Ventricular Arrhythmogenic Cardiomyopathy (ARVC): is also called Boxer Cardiomyopathy due to the higher predisposition in this breed. Affected animals develop changes in the structure of the right heart, with the result of suffering very severe arrhythmias. Treatment is mainly focused in blocking these arrhythmias.

Hypertrophic Cardiomyopathy (HCM): is a cat disease where the heart muscle progressively becomes thicker. As a result, the heart muscle becomes stiff and has difficulty to relax, and the blood encounters difficulty to pass through the heart itself and remains cumulated into the left atrium and the lungs. Cats start to breathe more heavily and are at risk of thromboembolization. It is very important to act promptly and discover the presence of the disease on time with the use of cardiac ultrasound. Treatment is always medical.