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Peculiarities of cardiovascular system diseases in horses
Cardio-vascular diseases in horses are very spread, but their causes are not always known. Heart pathology may clinically not be shown that cause some troubles while diagnose the disease and also while setting the value of diagnosed malfunction towards the health prognosis and the further using of an animal.
Special methods of research are needed to confirm the cardio-vascular system disease in horses. It is practically used the echocardiography which allows to detect the structural changes in heart and enlargement of its chamber and also to set its cause. Arrhythmia and its causes are registered with the help of electrocardiography however this method is more informational during or after the physical load.
In horses, in comparison with the other animal species, cardiovascular system has larger compensatory mechanisms since during the physical load the minute volume of heart enlarges in several times. Thus the estimation of its state during the tranquility gives a limited information and only during the maximum physical load latent course of the heart diseases are shown clinically. Determination of the cardiovascular system state in horses during the physical load is complicated. It is necessary to conduct researches after the load due to avoid diagnostic mistakes.
Arrhythmia, systolic and diasystolic dysfunction, heavy insufficiency of mitral valve and huge internal heart shunts.
Diseases of respiratory and digestion-intestine organs in horses can be the cause of myocardium dysfunction that is connected with the blood supply disturbance of the heart muscle, disbalance of electrolytes.
Arrhythmia, that is diagnosed in horses, mainly is physiological and occur in healthy animals. With the exception of fibrillation of auricle, pathological arrhythmia mainly appear in horses with cardiovascular and gastrointestinal diseases. Horses are inclined to fibrillation of auricle as a result of dominant vagal influence that cause the appearance of different, according to the duration, inauspicious periods and also owing to the huge myocardium mass. Owing to these causes fibrillation of auricles can occur both in the healthy horses and during the heart disease.
Among the diseases of non-contagious etiology in horses, it is often registered chronic diseases of breath organs (chronic obstructive bronchitis, lungs emphysema) which is in the form of cardio-pulmonary pathology.
It is known that dogs have pedigree inclination to innate organic defect of the heart. But today it is a few evidences concerning the inclination of some species of horses to the development of innate organic defect of the heart. It is known that among the innate organic defect of the heart in foals the absence of interventricular septum and Fallot’s tetrad.
Acquired diseases of valve apparatus of heart in horses are registered more often than it was considered before. While the echocardiographic research in horses, organic changes of bicuspid valve were detected. The insufficiency of tricuspid valve in horses may not be clinically shown since this defect can not limit the ability of an animal and to the physical load, if the dysfunction of the right ventricle is not developed. The insufficiency of the aorta valve can be registered as an innate defect and also as an acquired disease in horses older than 8 years. Insufficiency of the pulmonic artery valve as a primary disease is registered rarely.
Myocarditis in horses is mainly the result of bacterial or viral infectious or parasite invasion. Inflammation of heart muscle can occur as the complication of pericarditis, endocarditis, thrombophlebitis, using of pharmacological preparations.
Dilatational cardiomyopathy is the primary form of cardiomyopathy in horses. Fibrous fat form of cardiomyopathy is also allotted. The causes of this disease is myocarditis, toxic insult, acute poisoning of monensim, rare poisoning of heavy metals, neoplastic infiltration, hypoxic and ischemic strokes, lack of E vitamin, selenium, cuprum.
Inflammation of pericarditis in horse often occurs as aftereffect of breath organs diseases (pneumonia, pleuritis), after injury, flu, septicemia.
Among the diseases of vessels in horses, the aneurism of the aorta root and complete its rupture is registered.
One of the most spread diseases of peripheral vessels in horses is thrombophlebitis, which is caused by vein puncture, injuries, septicemia and systemic diseases which affects the increase in the blood coagulation. Thromboembolism is registered in horses which is caused by venous congestion by parasites larva (Delafondia vulgaris), systemic infectious, endotoxicosis, vasculitis, bacterial endocarditis.
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