ridecamp@endurance.net: Mitral Valve Prolapse in Arabian Geldings

Mitral Valve Prolapse in Arabian Geldings

Wendy Milner (wendy@wendy.cnd.hp.com)
Tue, 18 Feb 1997 13:08:40 MST

I don't know about horses, but I have Mitral Valve Prolapse.
What it means - You have several valves in the heart. The prolapse
part means that the mitral valve after closing gives a little extra push,
causing a bit of a backwash of blood.

My doctor said that it should not stop me from doing any competition.
He knows of several marathon runners with the same condition.
His only caution was to take antibiotics before visiting the dentist
(cleaning teeth causes bacteria to enter the blood stream, which
could in the backwash get stuck in the heart, and thus cause a
problem.)

For a horse with this condition, I'd see if I could hear it and then
just watch (and listen) for good recovery rates. If during training
you have no problems, go ahead and compete. Tell the head vet of
the condition, and have him listen. Have the vet write down on the
card the condition so that at vet checks the other vets know what is
normal for the horse.

--
Wendy


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  Wendy Milner                     HPDesk:   wendy_milner@hp4000
  Hewlett-Packard Company          e-mail:   wendy@fc.hp.com
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