ウサギの心臓疾患

2021年のアメリカの研究をご紹介します。

2001年から2018年にカルフォルニアのPritchard Veterinary Medical Teaching Hospitalに来院した合計2249匹のうさぎのうち59匹（2.6％）心臓疾患が認められました。

最も多かった所見は心雑音、その次に不整脈でした。

この研究では診断には、エコー、心電図、病理組織検査が使われているため、この発症率はより正確なものであると考えられます。（ほかの研究では、検査なしでの発症率の発表もあるため）。

しかし、心疾患の発症率は、ほかの臓器の疾患の発症率よりもかなり低いです。

私自身も、一度だけしか、拡張型心筋症のウサギさんに出会ったことがありません。

そして、ウサギの心臓疾患の診断は難しいです。

うさぎは胸が狭く、胸腺という組織が心臓に重なるので、レントゲンだけでは診断が難しいことがあります。さらに緊張するだけで心拍数が上がるため、心疾患かどうかの判断には注意が必要です。

治療法については、うさぎの心疾患はまだ治療法が十分に確立されておらず、今後の研究が期待されています。

A study conducted in the United States in 2021 provides useful information on cardiovascular disease in rabbits.

Between 2001 and 2018, a total of 2,249 rabbits were presented to the Pritchard Veterinary Medical Teaching Hospital in California. Among them, 59 rabbits (2.6%) were diagnosed with cardiovascular disease.

The most common clinical finding was a heart murmur, followed by arrhythmia.

In this study, diagnoses were made using echocardiography, electrocardiography, and histopathological examination. Therefore, the reported prevalence is considered relatively accurate, as some other studies report prevalence without performing these diagnostic tests.

However, the prevalence of cardiovascular disease in rabbits is still considerably lower than that of diseases affecting other organ systems.

Personally, I have encountered a rabbit with dilated cardiomyopathy only once in my clinical experience.

Diagnosing heart disease in rabbits can also be challenging. Rabbits have a narrow thoracic cavity, and the thymus can overlap with the heart, making diagnosis based on radiography alone difficult. In addition, rabbits can experience a significant increase in heart rate simply due to stress, which can complicate the interpretation of cardiovascular findings.

Regarding treatment, therapeutic options for cardiovascular disease in rabbits are still not well established, and further research in this area is needed.

文献

Ozawa, S., Sanchez-Migallon Guzman, D., Keel, K., & Gunther-Harrington, C. (2021). Clinical and pathological findings in rabbits with cardiovascular disease: 59 cases (2001–2018). Journal of the American Veterinary Medical Association, 259(7), 764–776. https://doi.org/10.2460/javma.259.7.764

Müller, K., & Mancinelli, E. (2022). Cardiology in rabbits and rodents—Common cardiac diseases, therapeutic options, and limitations. Veterinary Clinics of North America: Exotic Animal Practice, 25(2), 525–540. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cvex.2022.01.006

Pariaut, R. (2020). Cardiovascular physiology and diseases of the rabbit. In K. Quesenberry & J. Carpenter (Eds.), Ferrets, rabbits, and rodents: Clinical medicine and surgery (4th ed., pp. 279–286). Elsevier.