Cardiovascular system & cardiac emergencies Flashcards
What do clinical signs of pericardial effusion normally reflect?
Poor cardiac output and systemic venous congestion
What are some echocardiographic findings of pericardial effusion?
right atrial collapse, mass lesions, poor left ventricular filling, effusion, abnormal cardiac wall motion
What is immediately indicated for cardiac tamponade?
Pericardiocentesis
What are the clinical signs or symptoms of pericardial effusion?
Exercise intolerance, dyspnoea, tachypnoea, ascites, collapse/syncope, +- cough, GI signs, pulsus paradoxus, weak femoral pulses, muffled heart sounds
What are some nursing interventions for pericardial effusion?
ECG & Resp monitoring, IVFT, oxygen therapy (where indicated), monitor jugular distension, BP and pulse monitoring, patient comfort
What are some radiographic findings of pericardial effusion?
Globoid cardiac shadow ‘ basketball heart’, cardiomegaly, pleural effusion, hepatomegaly, caudal vena cava distension, pulmonary oedema, tracheal deviation, metastatic lung lesions
What is a pericardial effusion?
Fluid accumulation within the pericardium which leads to cardiac dysfunction that is most commonly neoplastic or idiopathic in origin.
What is cardiac tamponade?
Cardiac tamponade is when there is increased intrapericardial pressure that exceeds normal diastolic pressure leading to reduced ventricular filling and therefore reduced cardiac output.
What are the signs of cardiac tamponade?
Tachypnoea, dyspnoea, reduced arterial BP, weak femoral pulses, tachycardia, jugular distension
What is pulsus paradoxus?
abnormally large decrease in stroke volume, systolic blood pressure and pulse wave amplitude during inspiration (>10mmHg).
What is the normal amount of pericardial fluid?
0.25ml/kg of body weight
What are the 2 most common neoplasms causing pericardial effusions and what are their characteristics?
Haemangiosarcoma: most common, haemorrhagic effusion (HCT >7%, TP >30%), most arise in RA or auricle or heart base.
Chemodectoma: heart base mass, arise from chemoreceptor of the aorta.
When would you most likely encounter a transudative pericardial effusion? What are some characteristics?
Congestive heart failure, hypoalbuminaemia, congenital pericardial malformations, toxaemias.
clear, low cell count <1000ug/L (<8000 when modified), SG <1.012, protein <2.5g/dL
When would you most likely encounter a exudative pericardial effusion? What are some characteristics?
extension of pleural or mediastinal infection, bite wounds, plant awn migration, some bacteria i.e. aspergillosis, actinomycosis, coccidiodomycosis, leptospirosis, idiopathic pericardial effusion
cloudy or opaque, high nucleated cell count (>3000/ul), protein >3g/dl, SG >1.015
What dictates the rate of cardiac tamponade?
Rate of pericardial fluid accumulation and distensibility of the pericardial sac.
Rapid + small vol = intrapericardial pressure increase rapidly due to pericardial tissue stretching slowly
Slow + large vol = implies gradual filling and ability to maintain lower intracardial pressure for longer as the pericardium has time to stretch
What is meant by the term cardiomyopathy’?
Heart muscle disease that is associated with cardiac dysfunction.
What are the four basic types of cardiomyopathies?
- Dilated cardiomyopathy 2. Restrictive cardiomyopathy 3. Hypertrophic cardiomyopathy 4. Arrhythmogenic right ventricular cardiomyopathy (ARVC)
What is the etiopathogenesis of HCM?
ventricular hypertrophy in the absence of haemodynamic and metabolic cause.
- nondilated ventricle
- maine coon and ragdoll cats at most risk
What is the etiopathogenesis of RCM?
impaired ventricular filling in the absence of ventricular wall thickening (hypertrophy) or pericardial disease. Applied when there is atrial enlargement with normal or near normal ventricle.
- unknown cause but myocardial functional deficits (i.e. fibrosis) impair relaxation and result in diastolic dysfunction
- sequelae of endomyocardial inflamamtion
What occurs as a result of impaired myocardial relaxation and diminished chamber compliance in feline cardiomyopathies?
Altered presure-volume relationship where diastolic pressure is high and ventricular volume in normal or small. This results in atrial enlargment and venous congestion
- low stroke volume
- lower cardiac output
What causes impaired myocardial relaxation in HCM?
Intrinsic functional deficits in cardiomyocytes and ischaemia related to hypertrophy, as well as abnormalities in intramural coronary arteries.
What explains poor chamber compliance in feline cardiomyopathies?
Hypertrophy and fibrosis which stiffen the ventricle
Describe systolic anterior motion of the mitral valve.
Abnormal drag forces cause systolic movement of the mitral valve leaflets towards the septum. This causes a dynamic left ventricular outflow tract obstruction leading to mitral valve regurgitation. This decreases the preload and also afterload, increasing contractility. Still unsure of prognostic indicator in HCM but poorer prognosis observed. It is most commonly associated with causing cardiac murmurs in cats.
What is the most common site of thrombus formation in feline heart disease?
Left atrium