All the stuff we didn’t have a place for.
As a veterinarian, the recent webinar presented by Dave Dickson on “Tetralogy of Fallot is not as common as you think! A practical approach to small animal congenital cardiology” was a highly informative and valuable session. Dave Dickson, an RCVS Recognised Specialist in Cardiology and a director of HeartVets, presented a comprehensive overview of the practical approach to small animal congenital cardiology.
The webinar started with the explanation of a medical history, which makes the beginning of the talk very dynamic, as we have a patient, the heart sound as if we were listening to it with a stethoscope and the steps to follow. Dave then started to talk about what is a murmur, an overview of the complexity of detecting heart murmurs in puppies and kittens, its types, intensity, location and timing.
The webinar goes on with an explanation of the most common causes of murmurs in small animals, teratology of fallot being a very rare one, occurring in 1% of cases in dogs and 7% in cats. In 90% of the cases, the findings are puppies with: pulmonic stenosis, (sub)aortic stenosis, patent ductus arteriosus or ventricular septal defect. In cats what we find in 50% of the cases is ventricular septal defect, patent ductus arteriosus, tricuspid dysplasia or mitral dysplasia. Dave presented a detailed discussion on the clinical signs, diagnosis, and management of all of this causes of murmurs in small animals.
Throughout the webinar, Dave demonstrated his expertise in the field of cardiology by providing valuable insights and tips for detecting a murmur in a puppy or kitten and how to determine the severity of the condition. Dave stressed the importance of a sensible and practical approach to cases, balancing expertise in the field with a compassionate approach to the owners.
One of the most significant aspects of the webinar was the wealth of case examples, sounds, videos and photos that were shared, making it easy to follow and understand the complex subject of small animal congenital cardiology. His approach was incredible, whilst he emphasised the importance of an accurate diagnosis and how to get it.