Infective endocarditis in 13 cats.
BACKGROUND
To describe the clinical presentation, clinicopathological abnormalities and outcomes of a series of cats diagnosed with infective endocarditis (IE) at two tertiary care referral institutions.


METHODS
Thirteen client-owned cats presenting to the cardiology or emergency services of tertiary referral institutions with a diagnosis of endocarditis based on the modified Duke criteria.


METHODS
Retrospective case series. Medical records were reviewed to extract relevant data. In addition, cases that had cardiac tissue available were evaluated by polymerase chain reaction for the presence of Bartonella DNA.


RESULTS
Prevalence of feline IE was 0.007%. Cats with endocarditis tended to be older (median age: 9 years, range: 2-12 years) and no sex or breed was overrepresented. Commonly encountered clinical signs included respiratory distress (n = 5) and locomotor abnormalities of varying severity (n = 5). Echocardiographic examination detected valvular lesions consistent with endocarditis on the aortic (n = 8) or mitral (n = 5) valves. Nine cats were diagnosed with congestive heart failure at the time of endocarditis diagnosis. Overall, prognosis was grave with a median survival time of 31 days.


CONCLUSIONS
In contrast to dogs, cats with IE typically present with clinical signs consistent with cardiac decompensation and locomotor abnormalities suggestive of either thromboembolic disease or inflammatory arthritis. Given the advanced state of disease when diagnosis typically occurs, prognosis is grave.
Department of Veterinary Clinical Sciences, Iowa State University, College of Veterinary Medicine, 1809 South Riverside Drive, Ames, IA 50011, USA. Electronic address: jpalerme@iastate.edu.
Jean-Sébastien
JS
Palerme
Angell Animal Medical Center, 350 South Huntington Avenue, Boston, MA 02130, USA.
Ashley E
AE
Jones
Department of Veterinary Clinical Sciences, Iowa State University, College of Veterinary Medicine, 1809 South Riverside Drive, Ames, IA 50011, USA.
Jessica L
JL
Ward
Department of Clinical Sciences and the Intracellular Pathogens Research Laboratory, Center for Comparative Medicine and Translational Research, North Carolina State University, College of Veterinary Medicine, 1060 William Moore Drive, Raleigh, NC 27607, USA.
Nandhakumar
N
Balakrishnan
Department of Population Health and Pathobiology, College of Veterinary Medicine, North Carolina State University, 1060 William Moore Drive, Raleigh, NC 27607, USA.
Keith E
KE
Linder
Department of Clinical Sciences and the Intracellular Pathogens Research Laboratory, Center for Comparative Medicine and Translational Research, North Carolina State University, College of Veterinary Medicine, 1060 William Moore Drive, Raleigh, NC 27607, USA.
Edward B
EB
Breitschwerdt
Department of Clinical Sciences, College of Veterinary Medicine, North Carolina State University, 1060 William Moore Drive, Raleigh, NC 27607, USA.
Bruce W
BW
Keene
D000818:Animals; D000900:Anti-Bacterial Agents / Q000627:therapeutic use; D002371:Cat Diseases / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000188:drug therapy / Q000503:physiopathology; D002415:Cats; D004697:Endocarditis, Bacterial / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000188:drug therapy / Q000503:physiopathology / Q000662:veterinary*; D005260:Female; D008297:Male; D011379:Prognosis; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D016896:Treatment Outcome
D000900:Anti-Bacterial Agents
BAPGM; Bartonella; Duke criteria; Vegetative lesion