The University of Florida College of Veterinary Medicine has partnered with veterinary cardiologist Masami Uechi, DVM, PhD, to launch the country’s first open heart surgery program for dogs later this year.
It’s not the first time Uechi, of the JASMINE Veterinary Cardiovascular Medical Center in Yokohama, Japan, has visited the U.S.—he’s performed select surgeries in the country before and last year visited UF to talk mitral valve repair, a procedure for which he has a more than 90 percent success rate.
“The plan is for Dr. Uechi to come with his team and equipment for a week in the spring to perform the procedure initially on one dog, then to return two months later to do four more cases,” Simon Swift, DVM, chief of cardiology at UF’s Small Animal Hospital, said in a release. “From then on, he and his team plan to operate on six dogs every two months. This will lead to a teaching and research collaboration between UF, the JASMINE Clinic and Azabu University.”
Degenerative mitral valve disease is responsible for around three quarters of all canine cardiac issues, according to the release, and disproportionately affects small dog breeds like dachshunds, Cavalier King Charles spaniels, poodles and chihuahuas. A thickening and weakening of heart valves leads to a backflow of blood into the left atrium, promoting the buildup of pulmonary edema and ultimately triggering congestive heart failure.
“Medication can slow the progression and we can treat these dogs medically once they develop heart failure, but the average survival is only about nine months,” Swift said. “It’s a surgical disease, and it needs a surgical cure.”
The university hasn’t clarified a launch date for the program yet, but Swift said their facilities will be more than enough to support the complex work.
He said three dogs from the UF Small Animal Hospital have already traveled to France for the surgery, and another two will be leaving for Japan soon. As part of Uechi’s contract with UF, the vet will be providing training in mitral valve repair surgery to UF cardiologists, surgeons, anesthesiologists, perfusionists, critical care specialists and other staff on a recurring basis with the eventual goal of UF running the program independently.
After graduating from Indiana University-Bloomington with a bachelor’s in journalism, Anicka joined TriMed’s Chicago team in 2017 covering cardiology. Close to her heart is long-form journalism, Pilot G-2 pens, dark chocolate and her dog Harper Lee.