Arterial Thromboembolism in a Seven-Month-Old Cat with Acute Myocardial Injury

Q: What is the clinical evidence from this study?

Study design: Case Report. Population: Arterial thromboembolism and acute myocardial injury (n=1). Intervention: Intensive medical management. Primary outcome: Clinical outcome and survival.

Q: What does this research mean for the field?

Acute myocardial injury triggered by a stressful event can rapidly lead to fatal arterial thromboembolism in young cats even in the presence of normal ventricular wall thickness on echocardiography. Novelty: ClaimNovelty.NOVEL_FINDING. Consensus alignment: ConsensusAlignment.NEUTRAL.

Raluca Murariu; Alexandra Cofaru; Romelia Pop; Flaviu Tăbăran; Iuliu Călin Scurtu

doi:10.3390/ani16121816

June 12, 2026AnimalsOpen Access

Arterial Thromboembolism in a Seven-Month-Old Cat with Acute Myocardial Injury

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Key result

Acute myocardial injury and fatal arterial thromboembolism develop post-castration in a feline case report.

n=1

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Why the study?

Arterial thromboembolism is a well-recognized complication of hypertrophic cardiomyopathy but had been reported only once in association with transient myocardial thickening.

Key Points

To document a rare presentation of fatal arterial thromboembolism secondary to acute myocardial injury in a juvenile cat following routine surgical stress.
Evaluated a 7-month-old male British Shorthair cat presenting with dyspnea and acute hindlimb paralysis 36 h following castration.
Conducted physical examination, thoracic ultrasonography, transthoracic echocardiography, and subsequent post-mortem gross and histopathological analyses.
Initial echocardiography demonstrated a mildly dilated left atrium with normal ventricular wall thickness, while thoracic ultrasound identified confluent B-lines.
The cat deteriorated rapidly and died approximately 34 h after paralysis onset despite medical management.
Post-mortem examination identified a 17 g heart with marked left ventricular and septal thickening, diffuse interstitial edema, an intra-atrial thrombus, and a ~1 cm aortic bifurcation thrombus.

Study Design

Type

Case Report (n=1)

Structured PICO

P

Population

A 7-month-old male British Shorthair cat presenting with dyspnea and acute hindlimb paralysis 36 hours after castration.

I

Intervention

Intensive medical management including enoxaparin (0.75 mg/kg SC q8h), clopidogrel (18.75 mg PO q24h), buprenorphine (0.02 mg/kg IV q6h), furosemide (2 mg/kg IV q8h), and oxygen supplementation.

O

Outcome

Clinical outcome and post-mortem findings (survival/death).hard clinical

This report documents a rare and fulminant case of acute myocardial injury mimicking transient myocardial thickening complicated by arterial thromboembolism in a young cat following an anesthetic event.

Limitations

Absence of cardiac biomarker evaluation (e.g., NT-proBNP, cardiac troponin I)
Lack of specific diagnostics to exclude infectious agents as potential causes of myocardial injury
No pre-anesthetic cardiac screening was performed prior to castration
Absence of cardiac biomarkers evaluation
Lack of specific diagnostics to exclude other potential causes of myocardial injury
No pre-anesthetic cardiac screening performed prior to castration

Implication

Alerts to rare post-anesthetic ATE in young cats; leaves open transient myocardial thickening as broader ATE mechanism beyond HCM.

Abstract

Transient myocardial thickening is an acute myocardial disease characterized by reversible left ventricular wall thickening that mimics hypertrophic cardiomyopathy and is frequently associated with congestive heart failure. Arterial thromboembolism, a well-recognized complication of hypertrophic cardiomyopathy, has been reported only once in association with transient myocardial thickening. The current report describes a 7-month-old male British Shorthair cat that developed dyspnea 36 h after castration, followed by an acute onset of hindlimb paralysis. On clinical examination, the cat exhibited the classical signs of arterial thromboembolism. Echocardiography revealed a mildly dilated left atrium with ventricular walls of normal thickness, while thoracic ultrasonography identified confluent B-lines. Despite intensive medical management, the clinical condition deteriorated rapidly, and the cat died after approximately 34 h after the onset of paralysis. Post-mortem examination confirmed the presumptive diagnosis of acute myocardial injury. To the authors’ knowledge, this is the first reported case of acute myocardial damage with transient myocardial thickening-like presentation, developing within 36 h after a stressful event, with normal ventricular wall thickness on the initial echocardiography, complicated by arterial thromboembolism, and confirmed post-mortem.

Discussion

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Cite This Study

Murariu et al. (2026) conducted a case report in Arterial thromboembolism and acute myocardial injury (n=1). Intensive medical management was evaluated on Clinical outcome and survival. Acute myocardial injury complicated by fatal arterial thromboembolism developed 36 hours post-castration in a 7-month-old cat, confirmed by necropsy despite normal initial echocardiography.

synapsesocial.com/papers/6a2e4608b1cc60ccdea8ae08 https://doi.org/10.3390/ani16121816

Topics

Echocardiography

Cardiomyopathy

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Arterial Thromboembolism in a Seven-Month-Old Cat with Acute Myocardial Injury

Figures

Key Points

Study Design

Structured PICO

Limitations

Implication

Abstract

Discussion

Cite This Study

Topics

Arterial Thromboembolism in a Seven-Month-Old Cat with Acute Myocardial Injury

Figures

Key Points

Study Design

Structured PICO

Limitations

Implication

Abstract

Discussion

Cite This Study

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Topics

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