Diagnosis of Isolated Cleft of the Anterior Mitral Leaflet in a Dog: A Case Study Using Real-Time Three-Dimensional Echocardiography

Isolated cleft of the anterior mitral leaflet (ICAML) in dogs without a septal defect is a rare pathological condition. Until now, only one paper has contributed to the detailed understanding of canine ICAML. Reports have confirmed that 3-dimensional echocardiography (3-DE) is a simple and fast imaging technique that is useful for the diagnosis of ICAML and morphological evaluation of the mitral valve in humans. However, to our knowledge, no studies have provided details about the effectiveness of 3-DE in ICAML diagnosis in dogs. Thus, we aimed to determine the usefulness of a diagnostic technique using 3-DE in a 2-year-old Cavalier King Charles Spaniel with ICAML that exhibited mild mitral valve regurgitation. ICAML was initially assessed by transthoracic two-dimensional echocardiography. A diagnosis of congenital mitral regurgitation due to ICAML and understanding of the morphological structure of the valve was established based on the 3-DE findings.