RESEARCH COMMUNICATIONS OF THE 28th ECVIM-CA CONGRESS

In agreement with the data previously reported in humans, the present study showed that VPCs, AIVR, VT, complete AVB degenerating into VF and asystole are the most common causes of SCD in dogs. Additionally, the fact that 2/3 of the study population had underlying structural heart disease suggests that the presence of an anatomical substrate, when associated with a modulator (autonomic nervous system) and a trigger, increases the risk of sustained ventricular arrhythmias and degeneration into VF. To the authors’ knowledge this is the first report detailing causative arrhythmia of SCD in an extended series of dogs.