Published in Scientific Works. Series C. Veterinary Medicine, Vol. LXVII, Issue 1
Written by Antonello BUFALARI, Eleonora MONTI, Alexandra PETEOACĂ, Antonio DI MEO, Domenico CAIVANO, Francesco BIRETTONI, Giulia MORETTI
Patent ductus arteriosus (PDA) is the most common congenital heart disease in dogs and can lead to heart failure. The left-to-right PDA can be treated by minimally invasive procedures or open thoracotomic surgery. Intravascular techniques for PDA occlusion in our Hospital involve the use of vascular occluders, a device that expands within the ductus lumen to close the PDA. In small breed dogs, due to the small diameter of the femoral artery or due to the shape of the ductus itself, intravascular access is not achievable. In these patients, open surgery with ductus ligation is the proper approach. The surgical procedure is influenced by the characteristics of the ductus. When the ligature of the ductus appears difficult or too risky because of the presence of multiple adherences and adhesions on the medial part of it or because the extremely reduced size of it, the Jackson-Henderson technique is a valid alternative. The appropriate technique is chosen for each patient after considering the possible complications, the risk of dissection, the surgical timeline and the outcome. Our study aimed to evaluate all the intra- and postoperative complications associated with thoracotomic PDA-ligation in a definite category of affected dogs characterized by higher risk factors than the average of the surgery-treated ones.
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