An aquarium-housed, 6-mo-old African penguin (Spheniscus demersus) presented with acute respiratory distress. Auscultation revealed a grade II–III systolic murmur in the absence of adventitial sounds, and an enlarged heart without pulmonary edema was seen radiographically. Echocardiographic evaluation revealed atrioventricular (AV) valvular dysplasia and ventricular enlargement. The penguin was treated with enalapril, furosemide, and pimobendan but died within 3 wk of detection of the murmur. Congenital dysplasia of the right AV valve with right atrial and ventricular dilation and ventricular hypertrophy were diagnosed on postmortem examination.
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1 December 2014
VALVULAR DYSPLASIA AND CONGESTIVE HEART FAILURE IN A JUVENILE AFRICAN PENGUIN (SPHENISCUS DEMERSUS)
Allyson McNaughton,
Salvatore Frasca,
Neha Mishra,
Allison D. Tuttle
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African penguin
cardiac disease
congestive heart failure
echocardiography
Spheniscus demersus
valvular dysplasia