The Royal Veterinary College has published two studies on canine mitral valve repair that give UK veterinary teams clearer evidence on perioperative risk, recovery timing and owner expectations for this specialist procedure.

The clinical team at the RVC analysed anonymised clinical data from dogs from the UK, Europe and the USA undergoing mitral valve repair at the Queen Mother Hospital for Animals at the RVC.

One study evaluated the anaesthetic management and outcomes of 176 dogs undergoing surgery, focusing on complications during and around the time of anaesthesia1.

The second study assessed 66 dogs to identify features on heart scans that could help predict whether the heart would remain enlarged after surgery2.

The findings showed that mitral valve repair is associated with significant intraoperative and postoperative risks.

Longer cardiopulmonary bypass duration was associated with increased risk.

Dogs with greater pre-surgical heart enlargement and higher body weight were more likely to have persistent left heart enlargement after surgery.

Close perioperative monitoring and rapid-response protocols were found to be essential in managing anticipated complications.

The study also found that recovery outcomes vary, meaning individual patient factors must be considered when advising owners. 

Finally, the research demonstrated that most beneficial changes in heart size, known as reverse remodelling, occurred within the first three months after surgery.

Professor Dan Brockman, Professor in Small Animal Surgery and Director of the Cardiothoracic Surgery Service at the RVC, said: "Establishing and maintaining open heart surgical capability at the RVC has been both the most challenging and the most rewarding activity of my 36 years as a specialist small animal surgeon.

"Our team are rightly proud of what we have achieved, but we all know that the route to even greater consistency of results lies in the constant process of reflection, refinement and improvement in every aspect of what we do." 

The RVC is currently the only centre in the UK offering this specialist surgical procedure.

https://www.rvc.ac.uk/small-animal-vet/specialist-referrals/advanced-techniques/cardiothoracic-surgery/mitral-valve-disease 

References

  1. Palacios Jimenez C, Stathopoulou T, Redondo García JI, Rossanese M, Brockman D, Albhai H. Anaesthetic management and peri-anaesthetic morbidity and mortality in a population of 176 dogs undergoing mitral valve repair under cardiopulmonary bypass. Frontiers in Veterinary Science.;13:1800234.
  2. Atkinson BK, Rossanese M, Brockman DJ, Luis Fuentes V. Echocardiographic predictors of persistent left heart enlargement in dogs undergoing surgical mitral valve repair. J Vet Cardiol. 2026 Jan 16:S1760-2734(26)00003-2. doi: 10.1016/j.jvc.2026.01.002.