Left ventricular outflow tract to left atrial fistula associated with endocarditis in a dog

• Published in: The Journal of the American Animal Hospital Association Vol. 36; no. 2; p. 133
• Main Authors: Smith, A N, Finn-Bodner, S T, Dillon, A R
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: United States 01-03-2000
• Subjects: Angiocardiography - veterinary; Animals; Dog Diseases - diagnosis; Dog Diseases - diagnostic imaging; Dogs; Echocardiography - veterinary; Endocarditis, Bacterial - complications; Endocarditis, Bacterial - diagnosis; Endocarditis, Bacterial - veterinary; Fistula - complications; Fistula - diagnosis; Fistula - veterinary; Heart Atria; Heart Diseases - complications; Heart Diseases - diagnosis; Heart Diseases - veterinary; Heart Ventricles; Male; Staphylococcal Infections - complications; Staphylococcal Infections - diagnosis; Staphylococcal Infections - veterinary
• ISSN: 0587-2871
• DOI: 10.5326/15473317-36-2-133

A one-year-old, intact male, 28-kg, mixed-breed dog developed neurological episodes consistent with emboli. An acquired III/VI holosystolic heart murmur was ausculted in the mitral area, and valvular endocarditis with pulmonic and aortic insufficiency were noted at echocardiographic examination. An abnormal communication (i.e., fistula) between the left ventricular outflow tract (LVOT) and the left atrium adjacent to the mitral valve annulus was noted with Doppler imaging and confirmed with angiography. Infective valvular endocarditis was confirmed based on two of three blood cultures being positive for Staphylococcus intermedius. In humans, a sequela to infective endocarditis of the aortic or mitral valve, or both, is rupture of the mitral-aortic intervalvular fibrosa, resulting in a communication between the LVOT and the left atrium. This is the first report of this sequela in the dog.