Echocardiographic measurements in Greyhounds, Whippets and Italian Greyhounds ‐ dogs with a similar conformation but different size
- 1 January 2000
- journal article
- Published by Wiley in Australian Veterinary Journal
- Vol. 78 (1), 49-55
- https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1751-0813.2000.tb10361.x
Abstract
Objective To determine the effect of body size on various echocardiographic measurements in dogs of widely differing size, but identical body conformation. Design A randomised echocardiographic study of healthy sighthounds. Animals 60 dogs comprising an equal number (20) of racing Greyhounds, Whippets and Italian Greyhounds. Procedure Following sedation with acepromazine and morphine, and acclimatisation, a thorough echocardiographic examination was performed on each dog using standard methods. Results Dimensions measured echocardiographically were highly correlated with body size. These data were subsequently examined using analyses of variance and regression. Body surface area was the best overall predictor of dimensional measurements. In comparison to previous studies using dogs of differing size and conformation, the spread of values for measurements plotted against body surface area showed substantially narrower ranges. Thus, the relationship between echocardiographic measurements and body surface area was much closer for dogs with an identical somatotype than for dogs of differing size and conformation. Commonly used ejection phase indices (fractional shortening, ejection fraction and velocity of circumferential fibre shortening) were negatively correlated with body size. In contrast, the thickening fraction of the left ventricular posterior wall, another ejection phase index, was independent of body weight and body surface area for all three breeds and when the data were pooled. Conclusion Taken in consideration with previous work, this study demonstrates that body conformation and body size both influence canine echocardiographic measurements. Commonly used ejection phase indices are significantly affected by body size, with larger sighthounds having lower values. A more appropriate method of quantitating left ventricular function may be the determination of the thickening fraction of the left ventricular posterior wall.Keywords
This publication has 11 references indexed in Scilit:
- A COMPARISON OF ECHOCARDIOGRAPHIC INDICES OF THE NONRACING, HEALTHY GREYHOUND TO REFERENCE VALUES FROM OTHER BREEDSVeterinary Radiology & Ultrasound, 1995
- Echocardiographic measures of left ventricular structure and their relation with rest and ambulatory blood pressure in blacks and whites in the United KingdomJournal of the American College of Cardiology, 1994
- Determination of Left Ventricular Mass by Echocardiography in a Normal Population: Effect of Age and Sex in Addition to Body SizeMayo Clinic Proceedings, 1994
- Echocardiographic values in the GreyhoundAustralian Veterinary Journal, 1993
- Effect of Breed and Body Weight on Echocardiographic Values in Four Breeds of Dogs of Differing SomatotypeJournal of Veterinary Internal Medicine, 1992
- Association of echocardiographic left ventricular mass with body size, blood pressure and physical activity (the Framingham study)The American Journal of Cardiology, 1990
- Echocardiography: Principles of InterpretationVeterinary Clinics of North America: Small Animal Practice, 1985
- ECHOCARDIOGRAPHIC INDICES IN THE NORMAL DOGVeterinary Radiology, 1983
- M-Mode EchocardiographyVeterinary Clinics of North America: Small Animal Practice, 1983
- Ventricular dimensions measured noninvasively by echocardiography in the awake dogJournal of Applied Physiology, 1976