Cardioversion of supraventricular tachycardia in a cat with suspected Wolff–Parkinson–White syndrome in the absence of structural cardiac disease

Abstract

The objective of this publication is to provide the clinical presentation, electrocardiographic findings and therapy for management of suspected Wolff-Parkinson-White syndrome in a cat without evidence of underlying cardiomyopathy or systemic disease. A 2-year-old male neutered domestic shorthair cat was presented for continued investigations following recent transient loss of consciousness episodes. Electrocardiography showed a sustained supraventricular tachycardia, which was successfully converted to sinus rhythm with intravenous diltiazem administration. Ventricular pre-excitation was presumed during the electrocardiogram postconversion and oral diltiazem was instituted. Cardiac troponin I was measured, conversely to prior reports, which was significantly high on presentation and decreased after treatment. The new information provided by this case report is that it represents an original description of Wolff-Parkinson-White syndrome in a cat without any obvious underlying cardiomyopathy, and treatment protocol resulted in a successful outcome to date.

Flash pulmonary oedema associated with paroxysmal supraventricular tachycardia: report of two cases

“…12 In humans, SVT is generally idiopathic, whereas in dogs, the majority (65%) have structural heart disease. 12,13 In contrast, there is paucity of feline SVT studies, with descriptions limited to case reports 9,[13][14][15][16][17][18][19][20] and one retrospective study. 21 In the study, the most common presenting clinical sign of SVT was respiratory distress, and the diagnosis of CHF was associated with shorter survival times, in a univariate analysis.…”