Normal and paradoxical ventricular septal motion in the dog

Area of Science:

• Cardiology
• Veterinary Medicine
• Echocardiography

Background:

• Ventricular septal motion is crucial for cardiac function.
• Understanding septal dynamics aids in diagnosing heart conditions.
• Echocardiography provides detailed insights into cardiac mechanics.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate normal and abnormal ventricular septal motion in dogs.
• To compare septal motion in healthy dogs versus those with right ventricular overload or left-sided heart disease.
• To determine if septal motion abnormalities indicate specific cardiac conditions.

Main Methods:

• Utilized M-mode and 2-dimensional echocardiography in 35 healthy dogs (Group I), 12 with right ventricular overload (Group II), and 14 with left-sided heart disease (Group III).
• Assessed subjective and quantitative aspects of ventricular septal motion throughout the cardiac cycle.
• Calculated normalized radius of septal curvature from echocardiographic data.

Main Results:

• Normal septal motion involves active and passive movements, with maximum systolic excursion towards the left ventricle.
• Dogs with right ventricular overload showed reduced excursion, flat motion, and paradoxical systolic motion.
• A greater normalized radius of septal curvature was observed in dogs with right ventricular overload compared to healthy dogs or those with left-sided heart disease.

Conclusions:

• Ventricular septal motion is indicative of left ventricular shape.
• Flat or paradoxical septal motion should prompt suspicion of right ventricular pressure or volume overload.
• Echocardiographic assessment of septal motion is a valuable diagnostic tool in canine cardiology.