Why the study?
Aortic root rupture in horses can result in an aortocardiac fistula that leads to life-threatening hemodynamic changes and poses safety risks to horse and rider.
This case report documents the rare spontaneous closure of an aortocardiac fistula in a horse, suggesting that medical management with ACE inhibitors and stress reduction may facilitate healing in select cases.
May support conservative management in rare aortocardiac fistulas; leaves open applicability beyond this single equine case.
Aortic root rupture in horses is uncommon; however, awareness of the condition has heightened throughout the sport horse community in recent years due to increasing concern about horse and rider safety. It occurs most frequently at the right sinus of Valsalva, similar to the case in humans, and can result in an aortocardiac fistula (ACF).1,2 While aortic rupture in the absence of a preexisting aneurysm is rare in humans,2 there are multiple reports of spontaneous rupture in the horse.1,3-5 Sudden development of an ACF can lead to life-threatening hemodynamic changes and therefore poses a safety risk to both the horse and humans involved.
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Deacon et al. (2021) studied this question.
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