Ability of a 5-minute electrocardiography (ECG) for predicting arrhythmias in Doberman Pinschers with cardiomyopathy in comparison with a 24-hour ambulatory ECG.
BACKGROUND
Ventricular premature contractions (VPCs) are common in the occult stage of cardiomyopathy in Doberman Pinschers. Although the gold standard for detecting arrhythmia is the 24-hour ambulatory electrocardiography (ECG) (Holter), this method is more expensive, time-consuming and often not as readily available as common ECG.


OBJECTIVE
Comparison of 5-minute ECGs with Holter examinations.


METHODS
Eight hundred and seventy-five 5-minute ECGs and Holter examinations of 431 Doberman Pinschers.


METHODS
Each examination included a 5-minute ECG and Holter examination. A cut-off value of > 100 VPCs/24 hours using Holter was considered diagnostic for the presence of cardiomyopathy. Statistical evaluation included calculation of sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value, and negative predictive value.


RESULTS
Holter examinations revealed > 100 VPCs/24 hours in 204/875 examinations. At least 1 VPC during a 5-minute ECG was detected in 131 (64.2%) of these 204 examinations. No VPCs were found in the 5-minute ECG in 73 (35.8%) examinations of affected Doberman Pinschers. A 5-minute ECG with at least 1 VPC as cut-off had a sensitivity of 64.2%, a specificity of 96.7%, a positive predictive value of 85.6% and a negative predictive value of 89.9% for the presence of > 100 VPCs/24 hours.


CONCLUSIONS
A 5-minute ECG is a rather insensitive method for detecting arrhythmias in Doberman Pinschers. However, the occurrence of at least 1 VPC in 5 minutes strongly warrants further examination of the dog, because specificity (96.7%) and positive predictive value (85.6%) are high and could suggest occult cardiomyopathy.
Clinic of Small Animal Medicine, LMU University, Munich, Germany. gwess@lmu.de
G
G
Wess
A
A
Schulze
N
N
Geraghty
K
K
Hartmann
D000818:Animals; D002311:Cardiomyopathy, Dilated / Q000150:complications / Q000662:veterinary*; D004283:Dog Diseases / Q000175:diagnosis*; D004285:Dogs; D004562:Electrocardiography / Q000662:veterinary*; D005260:Female; D008297:Male; D011237:Predictive Value of Tests; D018879:Ventricular Premature Complexes / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000662:veterinary*