Echocardiography for the Assessment of Congenital Heart Defects in Calves

Congenital heart disease should be considered when evaluating calves with chronic respiratory signs, failure to thrive, poor growth, or if a murmur is heard on physical examination. Echocardiography is currently the gold standard for diagnosing congenital heart defects. A wide variety of defects, either alone or in combination with a ventricular septal defect, are possible. A standardized approach using sequential segmental analysis is required to fully appreciate the nature and severity of more complex malformations. The prognosis for survival varies from guarded to poor and depends on the hemodynamic relevance of the defects and the degree of cardiac compensation.