Non-invasive cardiovascular assessment of pregnancy in healthy female cats.

INTRODUCTION: The aim of this study was to evaluate cardiac morphology, indices of systolic and diastolic function, systolic blood pressure (SBP), and uterine artery resistance index (RI) during normal feline pregnancy. ANIMALS; MATERIALS AND METHODS: Twenty domestic short-hair pregnant queens, weighing 2.4-3.9 kg. Animals were assessed by two-dimensional, M-mode, and Doppler echocardiography, non-invasive SBP measurement, and uterine Doppler ultrasound every 10 days from mating to parturition. RESULTS: Interventricular septal thickness at end-diastole and end-systole, left ventricular internal dimension at end-diastole, left ventricular free wall thickness at end-diastole and end-systole, fractional shortening, stroke volume, cardiac output (CO), heart rate, and peak velocities of early and late diastolic transmitral flow increased during the second half of gestation, while SBP and RI decreased during the same period (p < 0.01). DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSIONS: Cardiac structure and function varied during normal pregnancy in these queens. Eccentric hypertrophy, increased indices of systolic function, and increased measurements of CO seem to be the consequences of the hemodynamic modifications occurring during pregnancy. The assessment of maternal cardiovascular function may prove a useful screening tool to detect pregnancy complications in feline species.

First report of cerebellar abiotrophy in an Arabian foal from Argentina.

Evidence of cerebellar abiotrophy (CA) was found in a six-month-old Arabian filly with signs of incoordination, head tremor, wobbling, loss of balance and falling over, consistent with a cerebellar lesion. Normal hematology profile blood test and cerebrospinal fluid analysis excluded infectious encephalitis, and serological testing for Sarcocystis neurona was negative. The filly was euthanized. Postmortem X-ray radiography of the cervical cephalic region identified not abnormalities, discounting spinal trauma. The histopathological analysis of serial transverse cerebellar sections by electron microscopy revealed morphological characteristics of apoptotic cells with pyknotic nuclei and degenerate mitochondria, cytoplasmic condensation and areas with absence of Purkinje cells, matching with CA histopathological characteristics. The indirect DNA test for CA was positive in the filly, and DNA test confirmed the CA carrier state in the parents and the recessive inheritance of the disease. To our knowledge this is the first report of a CA case in Argentina.

Doppler ultrasonographic assessment of maternal and fetal arteries during normal feline gestation.

The aim of this study was to describe Doppler parameters of uterine, umbilical, fetal abdominal aorta, fetal renal and fetal internal carotid arteries, as well as fetal heart rate (FHR), during normal feline gestation. Fifteen, 1-4 years of age, weighing 2.5-3.9kg, domestic short-hair pregnant queens, which were born in our institutional cat colony were included in this study. Color and pulsed-wave Doppler evaluations of uterine arteries were performed every 10 days (Day 0, 10, 20, 30, 40, 50, 60) from mating. Fetal Doppler and M-mode ultrasonography were performed to assess umbilical, fetal abdominal aorta, fetal renal, fetal internal carotid arteries and FHR. Both peak systolic velocity (PSV) and end diastolic velocity (EDV) of uterine artery increased up to parturition (P<0.01), while resistance index (RI) decreased from Day 10 onwards (P<0.01). From Day 40 onwards, RI of umbilical artery diminished, while PSV and EDV augmented (P<0.01). Fetal abdominal aorta (P<0.01), renal (P<0.01) and internal carotid (P<0.01) arteries diminished their RI from Days 40, 60 and 40 onwards, respectively. Both PSV and EDV of these three arteries increased progressively. Fetal heart rate was first registered on Day 20 when it began to increase up to Day 40 and then diminished to the end of gestation (P<0.01). It is concluded that blood flow of uterine, umbilical, fetal abdominal aorta, fetal renal and fetal internal carotid arteries progressively increased during normal feline pregnancy, while FHR rose to mid gestation and then decreased up to parturition.