The Longitudinal Outcome Of Canine (K9) myxomatous mitral valve disease (LOOK-Mitral registry): Baseline characteristics

Abstract Introduction The Longitudinal Outcome Of Canine (K9) myxomatous mitral valve disease (MMVD) registry (LOOK-Mitral registry) was established to describe the natural history and predictors of outcome in dogs affected by MMVD. This study was intended to describe the baseline characteristics of dogs in the LOOK-mitral registry. Animals Dogs with echocardiographic evidence of MMVD were prospectively enrolled by thirteen referral centers. Results A total of 6102 dogs with MMVD were included. The median age was 10 years (1–19 years), and mixed breed was the most common breed (n = 1,360, 22%). Concomitant diseases were reported in 2459 dogs with chronic respiratory diseases occurring most frequently (14%), followed by the presence of azotemia (6%) and orthopedic diseases (5%). Regarding disease severity, 65% of dogs were in ACVIM Stage-B1, 15% in Stage-B2, and 20% in Stage-C. Dogs in Stage-B1 were younger (p 1.26). Conclusions This study contributes to a better understanding of the clinical characteristics of dogs affected by MMVD and provides new findings that may be of clinical relevance.