Ultrasound/Cardiology
New Bolton Center is one of the world leaders in large animal cardiology, particularly as it applies to the horse. Cardiology was established at the large animal hospital of the University of Pennsylvania in the early 1970’s by Dr. Fred Fregin who began a tradition of clinical excellence. The early work in equine electrocardiography and exercise physiology has been continued to this day.
Echocardiography was added in 1979 with the addition of one-dimensional M-mode echocardiography. The expansion of echocardiography has continued with the development of 2-dimensional echocardiography and pulsed, continuous wave and color flow Doppler echocardiography. The application of 2-dimensional and Doppler echocardiography to the study of heart murmurs has revolutionized the understanding of the spectrum of valvular heart disease in horses and its impact on life and performance. Advancement in the diagnosis, monitoring and treatment of other cardiac diseases and cardiac arrhythmias occurred simultaneously with the advent of continuous electrocardiographic monitoring. Transvenous electrical cardioversion for horses with atrial fibrillation was added in 2006.
The cardiology group within the Section of Sports Medicine and Imaging has outstanding faculty and staff with state-of-the-art equipment, including echocardiography, electrocardiography, stress echocardiography, radiotelemetry electrocardiography, Holter monitoring, phonocardiography, a cardiac troponin I analyzer, intracardiac pressure monitoring, radiography, and a biphasic electrical defibrillator. A complete cardiac evaluation can be performed on all large animal patients along with state-of-the-art treatments as indicated. Large animal cardiology has an average yearly cardiac case-load of over 600 patients.