Lola

Lola, a 5-month-old female cockerpoo presented with lethargy and a loud heart murmur.

Echocardiography revealed the presence of a patent ductus arteriosus (PDA). This is a structure that is essential whilst the puppy is a foetus, however should close spontaneously following birth. Unfortunately, this closure did not happen in Lola’s case and without correction, Lola’s life expectancy would have been very short.

The recognised gold-standard for most PDA cases is closure via a minimally invasive, trans-catheter procedure with an interventional cardiologist. However, this was not possible in Lola’s case and our brilliant surgeon, Oliver Wilkinson, performed the closure which was successful and meant that Lola will now have a normal life expectancy and enjoys an excellent quality of life.