Evaluation of the Horse with Acute Cardiac Crisis

While the horse in acute cardiac crisis is not common, there are times when prompt diagnosis and treatment of cardiac disease are necessary for a positive outcome. Many veterinarians claim to be less comfortable with cardiology than other specialties, and equine practitioners are no different. However, knowledge about the physiology, diagnosis, and immediate treatment of a few of the more common equine cardiac emergencies is an attainable task. Conditions that can lead to acute cardiac crisis in the horse include arrhythmias (associated with aortocardiac fistula, myocarditis, toxins, cardiac hypoxia and ischemia, and infectious causes), heart failure (associated with congenital malformations, acquired degenerative valve disease, infectious valvulitis, and ruptured chordae tendinae), bacterial endocarditis, and pericarditis.