Key result
Left atrial enlargement is linked to narrower bronchial diameter in coughing dogs with murmurs.
Why the study?
The origin of cough in dogs with heart murmurs is controversial, with uncertainty whether it is primarily cardiac or respiratory in origin.
Case-Control (n=35)
Single-blind
No
Effect estimate: coefficient -0.22 (95% CI -0.39 to -0.05)
p-value: p=0.01
BACKGROUND: The origin of cough in dogs with heart murmurs is controversial, because the cough could be primary cardiac (eg, pulmonary edema, bronchi compression by left-sided cardiomegaly) or respiratory (eg, bronchomalacia, other bronchial or bronchiolar disease, interstitial lung disease) in origin. HYPOTHESIS/OBJECTIVES: To study the association between left atrium (LA) dilatation and cardiomegaly and bronchial narrowing in coughing dogs with heart murmurs using computed tomography (CT). ANIMALS: Twenty-one client-owned coughing dogs with heart murmurs and 14 historical control dogs. METHODS: Dogs with cough and murmur were prospectively recruited over 4 months. Cervical and thoracic radiography, echocardiography, and thoracic CT were performed in enrolled dogs. Control dogs, with no disease on thoracic CT and no records of heart murmur and coughing, were gathered from the institution's computerized database. Degree of bronchial narrowing was assessed using the bronchial-to-aorta (Ao) ratio, measured by 3 radiologists blinded to the clinical findings. After identifying bronchi that were significantly narrowed in dogs with murmur compared to controls, the relationship between degree of narrowing and LA/Ao ratio (measured echocardiographically) and vertebral heart scale (VHS) measured radiographically was studied in dogs with murmur using mixed-effects regression. RESULT: Significant narrowing was identified for all left-sided bronchi and the right principal, middle, and caudal bronchi in the coughing dogs, compared with controls. Increasing LA size and VHS were significantly inversely associated with diameter for all left-sided and right-sided bronchi indicated above. CONCLUSION AND CLINICAL IMPORTANCE: Results indicate an association between LA enlargement and cardiomegaly and bronchial narrowing and support heart size-associated exacerbation of cough in dogs with murmurs.
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Lebastard et al. (2021) conducted a case-control in Coughing dogs with heart murmurs (n=35). Left atrial enlargement and cardiomegaly vs. Historical control dogs without heart murmur or cough was evaluated on Association between left atrium-to-aorta (LA/Ao) ratio and square root of bronchus-to-aorta (B/A) ratios (coefficient -0.22, 95% CI -0.39 to -0.05, p=0.01). Left atrial enlargement was significantly inversely associated with bronchial diameter in coughing dogs with heart murmurs (regression coefficient -0.22).
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