This is a survey of non-traumatic skeletal abnormalities of the domestic cat. The types of diseases that are presented are congenital, developmental, metabolic, degenerative, neoplastic, inflammatory, infectious and a few diseases of uncertain aetiology. Each disease, where possible, is described in aetiological, symptomatical and radiological aspect. In the cases where there are plausible treatments these are presented..

Hydropericardium or pericardial effusion (PE) is the accumulation of fluid in the pericardial sac and is often secondary to pericardial diseases or diseases related to the heart. It is unusual with clinically relevant pericardial diseases in cats but pericardial effusion is the most common one. Since PE causes serious symptoms and may lead to death it is important with a quick diagnosis and treatment. PE can be acute and cause cardiac tamponade, which gives severe clinical signs. Cardiac tamponade needs to be treated immediately or else the cat will die from cardiogenic chock. More common is chronic PE where the fluid accumulates during a longer period of time and the pericardial sac stretches.

Sahlgrenska AcademyAt University of GothenburgDepartment of Internal Medicine and Clinical NutritionAbstractTitle: The obesity paradox, myth or truth in adults with cardiovascular disease.Author: Louise Svensson och Amanda NilssonSupervisor: Fredrik BertzExaminer: Ingrid LarssonProgramme: Dietician study programme, 180/240 ECTSType of paper: Examination paper, 15 hpDate: May 30, 2013Background: It has long been generally accepted that obesity is a risk factor for many diseases. Despite this, new research indicates that a higher BMI could be a protective factor for those with a chronic cardiovascular disease. This discovery is called the obesity paradox and could change the perception of patients' BMI in both public health and clinical work.Objective: The objective of this systematic review article is to examine the scientific evidence for the existence of the obesity paradox in chronic cardiovascular disease, i.e. if a BMI >25 kg/m2 is associated with lower mortality among adults with chronic cardiovascular disease.Search strategy: The databases used in the literature study were PubMed, Summon, Scopus and Cochrane. The keywords were: obesity paradox, cardiovascular, heart, male, BMI, intentional weight loss, cardiovascular mortality and mortality heart failure.Selection criteria: Studies, which had an adult population classified after BMI that suffered from chronic cardiovascular disease and had all-cause mortality and cardiovascular mortality as endpoints, were included.Data collection and analysis: Ten studies were included.

The purpose of the literature review was to examine barriers and facilitators to life style changes experienced by patients with coronary heart disease. This knowledge could be of use to the nurse in her role as a support to the patient in the process of life style change. The result from this study shows that family support, knowledege about the disease and motivation are important factors when changing life style behaviors..

Hydropericardium or pericardial effusion (PE) is the accumulation of fluid in the pericardial sac and is often secondary to pericardial diseases or diseases related to the heart. It is unusual with clinically relevant pericardial diseases in cats but pericardial effusion is the most common one. Since PE causes serious symptoms and may lead to death it is important with a quick diagnosis and treatment. PE can be acute and cause cardiac tamponade, which gives severe clinical signs. Cardiac tamponade needs to be treated immediately or else the cat will die from cardiogenic chock. More common is chronic PE where the fluid accumulates during a longer period of time and the pericardial sac stretches.

It?s been noted that cows held at the section of ruminant medicine and epidemiology, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences (IME), used for the education of veterinary students, have a lower heart rate than what is considered normal for ruminants. In this investigation the heart rates of seven lactating cows were recorded continuously during the period around drying off. The first recording took place at the farm from where the cows were bought, and then their heart rate was monitored after their arrival at IME and further on until they were completely dried off. The results were then compared to the heart rate of seven already dried off cows from the same farm.

Heart failure is the most common reason to hospitalization among persons over 65 years old. Self-care is an important part in the treatment of heart failure, but poor information and knowledge limits the ability of self-care and increases the risk of admission to hospital.The aim of the study was to investigate what information patients with heart failure describes that they receive from health care personal, how information is perceived, who provides the information, and on what occasions it is given. The aim was also to investigate whether patients' perception of knowledge about heart failure increased after hospitalization.The study is cross-sectional study with a descriptive design. A consecutive selection was used. A questionnaire was filled in by 28 participants.The study has shown that patients with heart failure largely experience information about heart failure inadequate.

Canine dilated cardiomyopathy (DCM) is a disease with high morbidity and mortality and with a high prevalence in certain breeds. Predominatly large breeds are affected, such as Great danes, Newfoundlands, Deerhounds and Dobermanns. One exception is Cocker spaniels, where both American and English Cocker spaniels are affected in a quite high frequency. Cardiomyopathy is characterised as a disease that affects the myocardium and gives an impaired heart function. To diagnose DCM following criteria have to be observed: 1. Dilation of the left ventricle. 2. Reduced systolic heart function. 3. Increased sphericity of the left ventricle. To be certain of the diagnosis, alternative reasons for the symptoms such as lung- and heart diseases with other etiologies have to be excluded Two different types of DCM have been found upon histological examination.

Heart failure is a condition where the heart is incapable of providing adequate blood supply to different organs in the body. The underlying causes of heart failure is some kind of disorder in the heart function, and require careful diagnostics. The basic symptoms that arise from heart failure is difficulty in breathing, that aggravate when lying down, and fatigue. The patients? symptoms and impaired quality of life can be in different stages depending on the severity of the heart failure.

Chronic valvular disease (CVD) is the most common cardiac disease in dogs, which account for 75% of all the cardiac cases. Cavalier King Charles spaniel (CKCS) is the most affected breed and it´s 13th times more likely that a CKCS, between the age of 7-10 years, will die or be euthanized for cardiac disease, compared with other breeds. The prevalence has been proven to bee independent of coat color and weight but highly dependent on age and gender in CKCS. In 2001 the Swedish Kennelclub and the Special club for cavalier King Charles spaniel created a breeding program against CVD in CKCS. In this program dogs are not allowed to breed until 4 years of age and have to have a heart auscultation without murmurs.

Hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HCM) is the most common heart disease in cats. Maine coon is one of the breeds where the disease is overrepresented. Studies have shown that HCM is inherited as an autosomal dominant trait in Maine Coon cats. This finding has led to cardiac screening using ultrasound in the breed. The results of the screening are used in a national breeding program constructed to reduce the spread and incidence of HCM in Maine Coon cats.

AbstractThis report aims, through interviews, observations and literature review to examine what some of the youngest children know about the heart, blood and bloodstream. The sample size was twenty children, half of them are at the age of three and the other half is at the age of six.The interviews showed that children at the age of six had better knowledge than children at the age of three, but one child knew that we have the blood corpuscle in the body. He was also the only one who mentioned the blood corpuscle of all children who participated in the research. Children at the age of three could not see the functional relationship between the blood and heart. One child who was six years told that the air we breathe goes directly in the heart from where the blood is circulating to the rest of the body, together with the food.Keywords: heart, blood, bloodstream, the body.

The aim: To examinate depressive symptoms among heart failure patients. Another aim was to examinate the differences in depressive symptoms between gender and between heart failure patients and the population. METHOD: The self-assassment formula MADRS was answered by twenty patients with heart failure at the University hospital in Uppsala. MAIN RESULT: Among the participants 31,3 % showed diffrent levels of depressive symptoms. Mild depression was more common in women.

Bakgrund: I Sverige föds cirka 800 barn med hjärtfel varje år. Framstegen inom barnkardiologi och kirurgi har resulterat i att fler uppnår vuxen ålder än tidigare. Detta medför en växande patientgrupp, så kallade grown- up congenital heart disease (GUCH) patienter. Att leva med hjärtfel kan påverka det dagliga livet, såväl fysiskt som psykiskt. Syfte: Studien syftade till att undersöka vuxna patienters upplevelser av att leva med GUCH.

BackgroundHeart failure is an increasing chronic disease in the western world due to an aging population and a changed lifestyle. The basic treatment is pharmacological with substantial lifestyle changes. Much is known about physical exercise in middle aged and younger patients but in the patients over the age of 65, little is known. AimThe aim of this study was to investigate the effects of physical exercise on patients aged over 65 with congestive heart failure. MethodA systematic review was undertaken in the databases Cinahl and PubMed.