Older dogs with slowing hearts are being treated with human pacemakers at the Auburn University College of Veterinary Medicine, according to a University press release.
SeungWoo Jung, assistant professor and clinician in the Cardiology Service of the Wilford and Kate Bailey Small Animal Teaching Hospital, recently placed one of the most advanced pacemaker systems used in humans in Joe, a seven-year-old bulldog owned by Wayne and MaryAnn Swift of Meridian, Mississippi, the release states.
“Pacemaker implantation is not new to veterinary medicine, having been done for the last 30 years,” Jung said. “What is relatively new, and the first one at Auburn, was the use of the same type of pacemaker used in human cases, which we implanted in Joe.”
Joe began experiencing fainting episodes in September, his owners said.
“We were shocked and frightened when they told us what they would have to do,” MaryAnn said. “We love that dog dearly, and we know he loves us.”
During Joe’s recent checkup, tests showed his heart was beating normally.
Pacemakers help monitor and control the heartbeat by sending electrical impulses to the heart.
The procedure that helped Joe is similar to the one done in humans, according to the release.
"Under anesthesia, a pacemaker wire is threaded through a dog's vessel in the neck to the correct place in the heart," the release stated. "A small incision, made in the back of the shoulder, then allows for insertion of the pacemaker under the skin and connection to the wire."
Pacemakers for dogs used to be older, human models, which only regulated the beating of the heart’s bottom chamber, Jung said. Today’s human pacemaker regulates the heart’s top and bottom chambers, but because of technical challenges, was not typically used in dogs.
Manufacturers have started donating human pacemakers, or offering them to the veterinary cardiology community at reduced costs, according to the release.
“We are able to offer the device at no additional cost to the owner,” Jung said. “Dogs are now able to get the most up-to-date pacemaker on the market.”
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