Radiological and Histoanatomy Study of Cardiac Arteries in Mature German Shepherd Dogs

Subject Areas : Journal of Animal Biology

Saman Ahani ¹ , Siamak Alizadeh ²

1 - Department of Veterinary Medicine, Karaj Branch, Islamic Azad University, Karaj, Iran
2 - Department of Clinical Sciences, Naghadeh Branch, Islamic Azad University, Naghadeh, Iran

Received: 2023-07-28 Accepted : 2023-09-12 Published : 2024-06-01

Keywords: German Shepherd Dogs, Heart Arteries, Histoanatomy, Radiology,

Abstract :

The aim of this study was to investigate the cardiac arteries in mature German Shepherd dogs, so that its findings can be used as a source for comparison between different breeds of dogs, as well as in the interpretation of results and clinical decisions. Since most of the surgical exercises by cardiac surgery residents in medical schools are done on the coronary arteries of animals especially dogs, the results of this research can be useful for this group as well. In this descriptive cross-sectional study, 8 adult German Shepherd dogs (4 males and 4 females) with an average age of 2.4 years and an average weight of 30.56 kg were used. For radiology studies, barium sulfate contrast material was administered into the arteries of the heart, then radiography was performed. For histological studies, tissue samples were stained with hematoxylin and eosin and examined. The results show that the left coronary artery is located between the pulmonary artery and the left auricle of the heart and is divided into two left rotating arteries and the paraconal interventricular artery. In one of the samples, exceptionally, the beginning of the left coronary artery was bipartite, and the left rotating artery and the paraconal interventricular artery had separate origins. The right coronary artery originates from the left sinus of the aortic bulb and was placed between the pulmonary artery and the right auricle. The results of the radiology examinations were completely consistent with the anatomical findings and confirmed the things stated in the anatomical results. According to the histological findings, the sinus node had a central artery that branched from the right coronary artery. The atrioventricular node had no central artery. The detailed results obtained in this study can be used in the discussion of the comparative anatomy of the heart vessels of dogs, the interpretation of the results and the clinical evaluations of the heart diseases of German Shepherd dogs, and also be useful for veterinary and medical surgery residents.

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