1. Which of the following congenital cardiac defects is correctly matched with a predisposed dog breed?
a. Pulmonic stenosis – English bulldog
b. Patent ductus arteriosus – Boxer
c. Tricuspid valve dysplasia – Chihuahua
d. Tetralogy of Fallot – Collie
Answer

2. Which of the following is the most common congenital heart defect in the cat?
a. Valvular pulmonic stenosis
b. Cor triatriatum dexter
c. Ventricular Septal Defect
d. Patent Ductus Arteriosus
Answer

3. Which of the following is the most classic signalment of a patient with patent ductus arteriosus?
a. 5-year-old male Thoroughbred
b. 9-month-old female miniature Poodle
c. 6-month-old male French bulldog
d. 4-year-old female ferret
Answer

4. What type of murmur is most commonly associated with pulmonic stenosis?
a. b. c. d.
Answer

5. Aortic stenosis is common in which of the following large animals?
a. Horses
b. Cows
c. Swine
d. Camelids
Answer

6. Subvalvular aortic stenosis leads to which of the following?
a. Concentric Left Ventricular Hypertrophy
b. Concentric Right Ventricular Hypertrophy
c. Eccentric Left Ventricular Hypertrophy
d. Eccentric Right Ventricular Hypertrophy
Answer

7. Which of the following may be observed on an electrocardiogram in a dog with subaortic stenosis?
a. Sinus rhythm with p-pulmonale
b. Atrial bigeminy with deep S waves
c. Atrial standstill and junctional escape rhythm
d. Tall R waves and ST segment depression
Answer

8. Which of the following is the most common congenital cardiac defect in horses?
a. Patent Ductus Arteriosus
b. Aortic Stenosis
c. Pulmonic Stenosis
d. Ventricular Septal Defect
Answer

9. You observe a veterinarian injecting saline into the peripheral vein of a Samoyed while an echocardiogram is being performed. You see that most of the microbubbles in the right atrium, right ventricle, left atrium, and the left ventricle. Which of the following conclusions most likely fits with the information above?
a. The Samoyed has a patent ductus arteriosus
b. The Samoyed has an atrial septal defect with some right-to-left shunting
c. The Samoyed has an atrial septal defect with only left-to-right shunting
d. The Samoyed has a patent ductus arteriosus with pulmonary hypertension and right-to-left shunting
e. This is a normal observation for a bubble study
Answer

10. The device in the picture below would be most likely used to treat which of the following congenital heart defects?
a. Patent Ductus Arteriosus
b. Pulmonic Stenosis
c. Atrial Septal Defect
d. Ventricular Septal Defect

Answer

11. What type of murmur is most commonly associated with tricuspid valve dysplasia?
a. b. c. d.
Answer

12. The device in the picture below would be most likely used to treat which of the following congenital heart defects?
a. Patent Ductus Arteriosus
b. Pulmonic Stenosis
c. Atrial Septal Defect
d. Ventricular Septal Defect

Answer

13. Mitzy, a one-year old FS Labrador, presents to your cardiology practice. The primary care veterinarian reports that Mitzy had a II/IV systolic murmur of short duration over her left heart base when she was 4 months old but you do not hear any murmur today. What do you tell Mitzy’s owners?
a. Animals less than 1 year of age can have innocent/physiologic murmurs that disappear as they age. You do not recommend any further diagnostics.
b. Once a murmur is present it should never disappear, so the referring veterinarian likely misdiagnosed the murmur when she was 4 months old. You do not recommend any further diagnostics.
c. The disappearance of a systolic murmur indicates that she could have a congenital heart defect that has progressed. You recommend an echocardiogram.
d. Anemia can cause murmurs to disappear so you recommend bloodwork to ensure that Mitzy is not anemic today.
Answer

14. What characteristics of animals less than 12 months of age cause them to sometimes have innocent/physiologic murmurs auscultated?
a. Young animals have higher blood pressures and this causes increased turbulence.
b. Young animals have lower blood pressures and this causes increased turbulence.
c. Young animals have a lower hematocrit which favors the development of a murmur and less fat around their chest wall which enhances transmission of turbulence.
d. Young animals have a higher hematocrit which favors the development of a murmur and more fat around their chest wall which enhances transmission of turbulence.
Answer

15. Fluffy, an 11-month old Maltese, presents to your cardiology practice. When Fluffy was 3 months old, her veterinarian noted a V/VI continuous murmur over the left heart base and bounding arterial pulses on physical exam. Today, the murmur is no longer present. What do you tell Fluffy’s owners?
a. Animals less than 1 year of age can have innocent/physiologic murmurs that disappear as they age. You do not recommend any further diagnostics.
b. Fluffy might have a PDA. The PDA could have been shunting left-to-right when she was 3 months old, and if she got severe pulmonary hypertension that caused her PDA to become right-to-left shunting then the murmur could go away. You recommend contrast echocardiography (bubble study).
c. Fluffy could have had bacterial endocarditis leading to mitral valve regurgitation when she was 3 months old. You recommend echocardiography to look for vegetations on the mitral valve.
d. Fluffy likely has Pulmonic Stenosis. You recommend echocardiography to measure the pressure gradient across her pulmonic valve.
Answer

16. A typical left-to-right shunting patent ductus arteriosis (PDA) causes blood to flow from the…
a. Pulmonary Artery to the Aorta
b. Aorta to the Pulmonary Artery
c. Left Ventricle to Right Ventricle
d. Left Atrium to Right Atrium
Answer

17. Which of the following does NOT typically undergo volume-overload due to a Patent Ductus Arteriosus (PDA)?
a. Left Atrium
b. Aorta
c. Pulmonary Circulation
d. Right Atrium
Answer

18. Which of the following is true about treatment of Patent Ductus Arteriosus (PDA)?
a. Surgical ligation or coil occlusion of the PDA in young animals who have not yet developed congestive heart failure is usually curative.
b. Prognosis for an uncorrected PDA is fair, with 96% living 5 years or more after initial diagnosis.
c. Both left-to-right and right-to-left shunting PDAs have a good prognosis when surgically corrected.
d. Surgical correction of a PDA should ideally occur after 1 year of age.
Answer

19. Pulmonic stenosis causes…
a. Eccentric hypertrophy of the left ventricle
b. Concentric hypertrophy of the left ventricle
c. Eccentric hypertrophy of the right ventricle
d. Concentric hypertrophy of the right ventricle
Answer

20. Smushy, an 8-month old English Bulldog presents for episodes of syncope. On physical exam you hear an ejection quality systolic murmur with PMI over the left heart base. On thoracic radiographs you see right ventricular enlargement with a post-stenotic dilation of the main pulmonary artery. Doppler echocardiography reveals a pressure gradient of 105 mmHg across the pulmonic valve. What do you recommend to Smushy’s owners?
a. Smushy has mild pulmonic stenosis and will likely not require therapy.
b. Smushy has moderate pulmonic stenosis and can be managed medically with judicious use of antiarrhythmics and diuretics.
c. Smushy has severe pulmonic stenosis and is a possible candidate for balloon valvuloplasty or surgery.
d. Smushy has severe pulmonic stenosis, though treatment is unnecessary because most dogs will live a normal lifespan.
Answer

21. Aortic stenosis causes…
a. Eccentric hypertrophy of the left ventricle
b. Concentric hypertrophy of the left ventricle
c. Eccentric hypertrophy of the right ventricle
d. Concentric hypertrophy of the right ventricle
Answer

22. Muffin, a 9-month old Boxer presents for episodes of syncope. An ejection quality murmur is auscultated with PMI at the 4th intercostal space and you feel weak arterial pulses on physical exam. With your current top differential in mind, what might you find on thoracic radiographs and echocardiography?
a. Concentric left ventricular hypertrophy, prominent aorta, high pressure gradient across the aortic valve.
b. Concentric left ventricular hypertrophy, prominent aorta, decreased pressure gradient across the aortic valve.
c. Concentric right ventricular hypertrophy, Continuous turbulent blood flow in the main pulmonary artery, elevated pressure gradient across the pulmonic valve.
d. Eccentric left ventricular hypertrophy, prominent aorta, elevated pressure gradient across the aortic valve.
Answer

23. What is the most common congenital defect in horses, cattle, and sheep?
a. Patent Ductus Arteriosus
b. Pulmonic Stenosis
c. Ventricular Septal Defect
d. Aortic Stenosis
Answer

24. Tetralogy of Fallot is defined by which of the following lists of defects?
a. Ventricular Septal Defect, Aortic Stenosis, Over-riding aorta, Left Ventricular Hypertrophy
b. Ventricular Septal Defect, Pulmonic Stenosis, Over-riding aorta, Right Ventricular Hypertrophy
c. Ventricular Septal Defect, Pulmonic Stenosis, Over-riding aorta, Aortic Stenosis
d. Atrial Septal Defect, Pulmonic Stenosis, Over-riding aorta, Right Ventricular Hypertrophy
Answer

25. Describe the mechanism for how pulmonary artery banding can be used to treat Ventricular Septal Defects (VSD).
a. Putting a band around the pulmonary artery decreases the pressure of the right ventricle, decreasing left ventricle-to-right ventricle blood flow through the VSD.
b. Putting a band around the pulmonary artery increases the pressure of the right ventricle, decreasing left ventricle-to-right ventricle blood flow through the VSD.
c. Putting a band around the pulmonary artery increases the pressure of the left ventricle, decreasing left ventricle-to-right ventricle blood flow through the VSD.
d. The band around the pulmonary artery will eventually migrate through the pulmonary circulation to occlude the VSD.
Answer