Author(s)

Marlos G. Sousa¹, Stephany B. Lucina¹, Roberta Carareto²

¹Department of Veterinary Medicine, Federal University of Paraná (UFPR), Curitiba, Brazil.
²College of Veterinary Medicine and Animal Science, Federal University of Tocantins (UFT), Araguaina, Brazil.

Supraventricular tachyarrhythmias may be caused by macroreentry circuits involving the AV node and accessory pathways. This paper reports a case of suspected orthodromic atrioventricular reciprocating tachycardia in an 18-month-old Dalmatian admitted with dyspnea and a lifelong history of fatigue. Cardiac auscultation documented a regular fast pace with no heart murmurs. The electrocardiogram characteristics were consistent with supraventricular tachycardia, with very regular RR interval and narrow QRS complexes. At lead II, we identified negative P waves buried within the ST segment, which resulted in a RP-to-PR ratio of 0.60, but in aVR these P waves were positive, suggesting a retrograde conduction of electrical impulses throughout the atrial myocardium. The echocardiographic study showed volume overload, and a decreased fractional shortening was calculated when SVT was sustained, highlighting its impact on systolic function. This is likely the first description of an orthodromic atrioventricular reciprocating tachycardia in a Dalmatian, and although cardiac mapping was not available to confirm this suspicion, all electrocardiograpic features were supportive of such arrhythmia.

Arrhythmia, Tachycardiomyopathy, Accessory Pathway, Reentrant Arrhythmia

Sousa, M. , Lucina, S. and Carareto, R. (2018) Orthodromic Atrioventricular Reciprocating Tachycardia in a Dalmatian. Open Journal of Veterinary Medicine, 8, 1-8. doi: 10.4236/ojvm.2018.81001.