Case Study

Dilated Cardiomyopathy (DCM)-like Syndrome Secondary to Parvoviral Myocarditis

A one month old sheltie cross dog with a history of 5 of 7 littermates dying from parvovirus was presented for lethargy, and diarrhea. Parvovirus was identified in a littermate’s myocardium at necropsy.

A one month old sheltie cross dog with a history of 5 of 7 littermates dying from parvovirus was presented for lethargy, and diarrhea. Parvovirus was identified in a littermate’s myocardium at necropsy.

Sonographic Differential Diagnosis

The echocardiogram is consistent with dilated cardiomyopathy with marked left ventricular dilation and reduced systolic function, in this case, likely due to the previous parvovirus infection. The condition appears relatively advanced with the changes noted but the heart appears to be compensating at this time with the normal left atrial size seen here as well as the lack of clinical signs noted.

Image Interpretation

The left atrium appears normal in size. All valves viewed appear normal. The left ventricular cavity is markedly dilated in diastole (3.1 cm) and systole (2.4 cm) with a depressed fractional shortening (22 %) consistent with myocardial failure. The left ventricular walls are thinned (0.6 cm septal wall and 0.6 cm free wall) and the myocardium appears mildly hyperechoic. The right ventricle is normal and the right atrium is normal in size. The main pulmonary artery appears normal in comparison to the aorta. The aortic and pulmonary artery velocities are normal at 1.32 m/sec and 1.02 m/sec respectively. There is mild tricuspid regurgitation on Doppler exam. There is no pleural or pericardial effusion or evidence of neoplasia on this exam. The heart rate is measured at 200 bpm and a regular rhythm is seen on M-mode exam.