Introduction/objectives

Inherited or acquired arrhythmic disorders and cardiac disease have been associated with sudden cardiac death (SCD) in dogs. The electrical mechanism related to death in most of these cases is unknown. This retrospective study aimed to describe arrhythmic events in dogs that experienced SCD during Holter monitoring.

Animals, materials and methods

Nineteen client-owned dogs that experienced SCD during Holter examination were included. Clinical records from a Holter service database were reviewed, and both the rhythm preceding death and the dominant rhythm causing SCD were analysed. Clinical data, Holter diaries and echocardiographic diagnosis were also evaluated.

Results

Structural heart disease was identified in 12/19 dogs (dilated cardiomyopathy in five dogs, arrhythmogenic right ventricular cardiomyopathy in four dogs, myxomatous mitral valve disease in two dogs, and suspected myocarditis in one dog), five of which had concurrent congestive heart failure. Sudden cardiac death was related to ventricular premature complexes or monomorphic ventricular tachycardia degenerating into ventricular fibrillation in 42% of dogs, polymorphic ventricular tachycardia, or torsade de pointes-like inducing ventricular fibrillation in 21%, and asystole or presumptive agonal pulseless electrical activity triggered by malignant bradyarrhythmias in 37%.

Conclusions

The most common rhythm associated with SCD in our population of dogs was ventricular tachycardia leading to ventricular fibrillation, although bradyarrhythmia-related SCD, possibly related to inappropriate vagal reflexes, was also a notable cause.

中文翻译：

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犬心脏性猝死期间的心律表征

介绍/目标

遗传性或获得性心律失常和心脏病与狗的心源性猝死 (SCD) 相关。在大多数情况下，与死亡相关的电机制是未知的。这项回顾性研究旨在描述在动态心电图监测期间经历 SCD 的狗的心律失常事件。

动物、材料和方法

包括在 Holter 检查期间经历 SCD 的 19 只客户拥有的狗。对来自 Holter 服务数据库的临床记录进行了审查，并对死亡前的心律和导致 SCD 的主要心律进行了分析。还评估了临床数据、动态心电图日记和超声心动图诊断。

结果

在 12/19 只狗中发现结构性心脏病（5 只狗为扩张型心肌病，4 只狗为心律失常性右心室心肌病，2 只狗为粘液瘤性二尖瓣疾病，1 只狗疑似心肌炎），其中 5 只狗并发充血性心力衰竭。心源性猝死与 42% 犬的室性早搏或单形室性心动过速退化为室颤有关，21% 与多形室性心动过速或尖端扭转型室颤诱发心室颤动有关，以及心搏停止或推定的濒死性无脉电活动触发恶性缓慢性心律失常占 37%。

结论

在我们的犬群中，与 SCD 相关的最常见节律是导致心室颤动的室性心动过速，尽管可能与不适当的迷走神经反射相关的缓慢性心律失常相关的 SCD 也是一个值得注意的原因。