RESEARCH COMMUNICATIONS OF THE 28th ECVIM-CA CONGRESS

Pulmonary hypertension (PH) is a common comorbidity in dogs infected with Angiostrongylus vasorum. The aim of the present descriptive study was to assess echocardiographic changes indicative of PH and outcome in dogs treated for angiostrongylosis. Dogs with a positive Angio‐detect (IDEXX) or Bearmann analysis and echocardiography performed at diagnosis (T0) were retrospectively included (n=23, median age 1.9years, range 0.3–15.8). After treatment, follow‐up echocardiography was performed in 16 dogs either within short‐term (n=12) (< 5months after diagnosis; median 1month) (T1) and/or long‐term (n=7) (> 5months; median 15.9months) (T2). Tricuspid regurgitation pressure gradient (TRPG), main pulmonary artery to aorta ratio (MPA/Ao), right pulmonary vein to pulmonary artery ratio (PV/PA), right pulmonary distensibility index (RPAD), and acceleration to ejection time ratio of the pulmonary flow (AT:ET) were retrospectively measured and compared over time using a mixed linear model. Dogs were treated with fenbendazole for 1 to 21 days (median 7 days) followed by a moxidectin spot‐on (n=19). Additionally, 14 dogs received cardiac treatment for PH including sildenafil (n=14), pimobendan (n=5), and furosemide (n=2). A significant improvement of PVPA in M‐mode (0.56 at T0 vs. 1.02 at T1 vs. 0.90 at T2, P=0.0002) and in 2D‐mode (0.55vs.0.82vs.083, P=0.0031), MPA/Ao (0.95vs.0.80vs.0.83, P=0.03) and AT:ET (0.37vs.0.47vs.0.48, P=0.0005) was observed between T0 and T1 and T0 and T2. Differences were not significant between T1 and T2 for these parameters. There was no significant change for RPAD (21.4vs.29.1vs.23.8%, P=0.385) nor TRPG (76.6vs.49.2mmHg, P=0.0842) over time. TRPG was measured in 16/23 (69.6%) dogs at T0, 7/12 (58.3%) at T1 and 1/7 (14.2%) at T2. TRPG indicated absent, mild, moderate and severe PH in respectively 1 (4.3%), 3 (13%), 2 (8.7%), and 10 (43.5%) dogs at diagnosis. Of 23 dogs included, 17 (74%) were alive at the time of writing, while 6 (26%) died; with all deaths related to cardio‐respiratory disease. Individual survival times from these dogs were 1, 3, 36, 93, 148 and 320 days (median 64.5 days) after diagnosis. PH was moderate and severe in 2 and 4 non‐survivors respectively. Individual echocardiographic parameters in non‐survivors did not improve at short‐term recheck (n=3). Results of this study demonstrated a mortality rate of 26% among dogs with angiostrongylosis that underwent an echocardiography at diagnosis. Non‐survival seems to be associated with a persistent moderate to severe PH. In general, an improvement of indirect parameters of PH was noted at short‐ and long‐term rechecks, despite no significant difference for TRPG at short‐term.