Alterations in the large peripheral circulation in dogs with heart failure

• Published in: The veterinary journal (1997) Vol. 188; no. 1; pp. 101 - 104
• Main Authors: Nogueira, Rodrigo B., Palacio, Maria Josefa F., López, Jesús Talavera, Muzzi, Ruthnéa A.L.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: England Elsevier Ltd 01.04.2011
• Subjects: Animals; Blood flow; Blood Flow Velocity; Canine; Case-Control Studies; Dog Diseases - diagnostic imaging; Dogs; Doppler; exercise; Female; Femoral artery; Femoral Artery - diagnostic imaging; Heart failure; Heart Failure - diagnostic imaging; Heart Failure - veterinary; Male; patients; Regional Blood Flow - physiology; ultrasonography; Ultrasonography, Doppler, Duplex - veterinary; Heart failure; Femoral artery; Doppler; Canine; Blood flow
• ISSN: 1090-0233; 1532-2971
• DOI: 10.1016/j.tvjl.2010.03.012

The femoral artery is responsible for perfusion of a large muscular region that can be involved in the exercise intolerance shown by dogs with spontaneous heart failure. The objective of the present study was to evaluate blood flow in the femoral artery by transcutaneous duplex Doppler ultrasonography (TDU) in 50 healthy dogs and 50 dogs with spontaneous heart failure. The group of dogs with heart disease was divided according to the functional class of the heart failure. The TDU measurements were: peak systolic velocity (PSV), early retrograde (EDV) and end diastolic velocities (EnDV), mean velocity (MV), pulsatility index (PI), resistivity index (RI) and femoral flow volume (FFV). In healthy dogs, PSV and FFV were significantly higher than in dogs with heart disease. FFV was reduced mainly in patients with moderate and severe heart failure. TDU allowed for non-invasive detection and quantification of pathological alterations in peripheral hemodynamics.