Autopsy report:
4/28/16: Further microscopic examination of the heart revealed additional areas of acute (recent) and chronic (long standing) degeneration of the cardiac muscle. Regions of chronic degeneration are accompanied by significant amounts of interstitial fibrosis (healing response) that surround and entrap atrophied muscle fibers. These cardiac changes likely resulted in an episode of acute cardiac failure culminating in the sudden death of this animal. The underlying cause of cardiac muscle degeneration and necrosis is undetermined and difficult to speculate about, especially given that most of the lesions are of a chronic nature. Known causes of cardiac muscle degeneration and necrosis include infectious agents (parvovirus, herpesvirus, various bacteria; unlikely in this case given the lack of inflammation), thiamine deficiency, toxins (doxorubicin, rodenticides containing thallium, plants containing cardiac glycosides, gossypol, rapeseed oil, etc), infarction/ischemia (i.e. coronary artery blockage) and excessive catecholamine release (adrenal tumors, “brain-heart syndrome”). The previous history of ingestion of snail bait (metaldehyde) by this dog suggests the possibility that “brain-heart syndrome” could be underlying the chronic cardiac changes, as metaldehyde is a neurotoxin that causes central nervous system excitation. There was no evidence of Dilated Cardiomyopathy (DCM) or Hypertrophic Cardiomyopathy (HCM) nor were any congenital heart defects present. Aerobic cultures of the lungs and liver did not yield any bacteria. The miscellaneous findings (lymphoid hyperplasia and osseous metaplasia) are incidental and not clinically significant. This concludes all diagnostic testing
4/28/16: Further microscopic examination of the heart revealed additional areas of acute (recent) and chronic (long standing) degeneration of the cardiac muscle. Regions of chronic degeneration are accompanied by significant amounts of interstitial fibrosis (healing response) that surround and entrap atrophied muscle fibers. These cardiac changes likely resulted in an episode of acute cardiac failure culminating in the sudden death of this animal. The underlying cause of cardiac muscle degeneration and necrosis is undetermined and difficult to speculate about, especially given that most of the lesions are of a chronic nature. Known causes of cardiac muscle degeneration and necrosis include infectious agents (parvovirus, herpesvirus, various bacteria; unlikely in this case given the lack of inflammation), thiamine deficiency, toxins (doxorubicin, rodenticides containing thallium, plants containing cardiac glycosides, gossypol, rapeseed oil, etc), infarction/ischemia (i.e. coronary artery blockage) and excessive catecholamine release (adrenal tumors, “brain-heart syndrome”). The previous history of ingestion of snail bait (metaldehyde) by this dog suggests the possibility that “brain-heart syndrome” could be underlying the chronic cardiac changes, as metaldehyde is a neurotoxin that causes central nervous system excitation. There was no evidence of Dilated Cardiomyopathy (DCM) or Hypertrophic Cardiomyopathy (HCM) nor were any congenital heart defects present. Aerobic cultures of the lungs and liver did not yield any bacteria. The miscellaneous findings (lymphoid hyperplasia and osseous metaplasia) are incidental and not clinically significant. This concludes all diagnostic testing