Problems in veterinary ultrasonographic analysis of acquired heart disease

Echocardiography in veterinary medicine has both enhanced our ability to diagnose and treat cardiac diseases in small animals and added confusion to what we already know. Because we can actually see the heart beating and visualize blood flows within the cardiac chambers as well as measure velocities of blood flows, we have a tool that increases our non-invasive diagnostic abilities. On the other hand, the lines between different heart diseases are not always clear-cut, and the more we learn about heart disease the more we see the shades of distinction between different diseases become blurred. This chapter will look at the main abnormalities we see in veterinary medicine (mitral regurgitation, pericardial disease, and the different feline and canine cardiomyopathies) and will attempt to help the veterinary echocardiographer avoid common problems encountered in acquired heart disease as well as use echocardiographic information to gain a better understanding of the disease process occurring in animals.