Supraventricular tachycardia in 23 cats; comparison with 21 cats with atrial fibrillation (2004-2014)

Abstract Introduction Supraventricular tachycardia (SVT) has not been well-described in cats. The aim of this study was to describe the signalment, clinical findings and outcome for cats with SVT versus cats with atrial fibrillation (AF). Animals Forty-four client-owned cats; 23 cats with SVT and 21 with AF. Methods Retrospective study. Clinical characteristics were compared between groups using a two-sample t-test or Mann-Whitney U test. Kaplan-Meier survival curves were generated to assess for impact of rhythm diagnosis, presence of ventricular arrhythmia, left atrial diameter, heart rate (HR) and congestive heart failure (CHF) status on cardiac death. Differences in survival between groups were compared using Mantel-Cox logrank comparison of Kaplan-Meier survival curves. Results Cats with supraventricular arrhythmias most commonly presented with respiratory distress (10 of 44 cats). Cats with AF had a slower median HR (220 [range 180-260 beats per minute (bpm)] compared to cats with SVT (300 [range 150-380] bpm, p Conclusions Most cats with AF or SVT have advanced structural heart disease. Some cats with SVT had structurally normal hearts, suggesting that SVT in cats is not always a consequence of atrial enlargement.