Small Animal Clinic, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Veterinary and Pharmaceutical Sciences Brno, Palackého tř. 1946/1, 612 42, Brno, Czech Republic.
Department of Pharmacology and Pharmacy, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Veterinary and Pharmaceutical Sciences Brno, Brno, Czech Republic.
BMC Vet Res. 2021 Jan 22;17(1):45. doi: 10.1186/s12917-020-02736-2.
Atrioventricular canal defect is a rare congenital disorder of the heart and describes the presence of an atrial septal defect, a variable presentation of ventricular septal alterations including ventricular septal defect malformations in the mitral and tricuspid valves. The defect has been described in human beings, dogs, cats, pigs, and horses.
This paper describes the case of a complete atrioventricular canal defect in a four-year-old intact male pet ferret (Mustela putorius furo), which was presented due to posterior weakness, ataxia, and decreased appetite. A loud systolic murmur, dyspnea, and hind limb paraparesis were detected during the clinical examination. Thoracic radiographs showed generalized cardiomegaly and lung edema. ECG showed sinus rhythm with prolonged P waves and QRS complexes. Echocardiography showed a large atrial septal defect, atrioventricular dysplasia, and a ventricular septal defect. Palliative treatment with oxygen, furosemide, spironolactone, enalapril, diltiazem, and supportive care was chosen as the therapy of choice. The ferret recovered gradually during hospitalization. A follow-up examination at three and six months showed stabilization of cardiac function.
To the authors knowledge, this is the first time an atrioventricular canal defect has been described in a pet ferret.
房室管缺损是一种罕见的先天性心脏疾病，描述了存在房间隔缺损，以及包括二尖瓣和三尖瓣的心室间隔变化的各种表现，包括室间隔缺损畸形。这种缺陷已在人类、狗、猫、猪和马中被描述过。
本文描述了一例四岁雄性完整宠物雪貂（Mustela putorius furo）的完全性房室管缺损病例，该雪貂因后肢无力、共济失调和食欲下降而就诊。临床检查发现响亮的收缩期杂音、呼吸困难和后肢轻瘫。胸部 X 光片显示心脏普遍增大和肺水肿。心电图显示窦性节律，P 波和 QRS 复合体延长。超声心动图显示巨大的房间隔缺损、房室管发育不良和室间隔缺损。选择氧疗、呋塞米、螺内酯、依那普利、地尔硫卓和支持性治疗作为首选治疗方法。雪貂在住院期间逐渐康复。三个月和六个月的随访检查显示心脏功能稳定。
据作者所知，这是首次在宠物雪貂中描述房室管缺损。
