Gene Discovered in Mitral Valve Disease

Study: 'Close but No Cigar' A study has discovered a gene present in adult patients diagnosed with mitral valve prolapse.

It's not a new study -- 2005 -- but it's new to me. I read everything I can get my hands on about the disease. There has yet to be a comprehensive one done with dogs. I do know from reading about the disorder in canines, from what literature is out there, that it's found more often in certain breeds and that it's considered genetic. Mia's vet told me it's sometimes seen in overbred dogs, which makes sense with Mia, since she's a full long-haired Chihuahua.

It's also widely seen in the Cavalier King Charles Spaniel. mitral valve disease in these dogs has shown them to have lifespans of just one to three years. Not good statistics. In other breeds, especially the smaller ones, like Mia, the disease doesn't cause early death because it often doesn't develop until they're older. In Mia's case, however, she developed it young. She was rescued from the storm water in New Orleans when she was only 2 or 3. Now she's around 5 or 6 years old.

We knew when Mia was first examined at the triage center that she had a heart murmur. Little dogs often do. But it's most often because of innocent flow murmurs, not MVP. Then, when she became lethargic (as described in an earlier blog post, below), I took her to the doctor and ultrasound and radiographs were done, and that's when we learned the sad news. She received a Grade 5 (V) -- graded from 1 to 6 -- which meant her murmur was quite loud, with the vibration felt with fingertips without a stethoscope and with a precordial "thrill." Not good. The latest gene study, however, gives me hope, because they've isolated the gene, which means we now know what the tissue consists of and, for Mia, what supplements she can take to help her valve tissue heal. In the meantime, I'm still doing CoQ10 enzyme therapy, along with other supplements, to keep her ticker ticking. To sum up, here are the words from Dr. J Am Coll Cardiol from the American College of Cardiology Foundation:

"Having identified 3 chromosomal loci for mitral valve prolapse does not in itself load the train with genes, but it does suggest that the caboose is waiting to hitch it," the study says. "Let us hope that with our ability today to rapidly sequence DNA and evaluate new candidate genes we will enable the train to leave the station soon."

Photo, by Cathy, of Mia sleeping, with Lois Lane (a chihuahua puppy who was with Mia and me for two months), under the desk in Tylertown, Mississippi, at the triage center for Katrina pets.

Treatment on a plane

On the plane from Las Vegas to Santa Fe, NM, Friday afternoon (more about the fabulous trip to Santa Fe with Ali MacGraw later), Mia started coughing. I tried to calm her. She does that occasionally at home and I prop her up, gently pat her chest and it goes away. It didn't work, so I instead punctured a gel capsule of ubiquinol CoQ10 (coenzyme Q10) and squeezed it under her tongue. Within seconds, her coughing stopped and she was fine again. A gal in the seat next to us asked if I had given Mia a tranquilizer. I explained what it was, that it improved her heart's pumping ability and circulation, and she said she would not have believed it had she not seen the quick reaction for herself. I learned about putting it under her tongue from my friends Harriet and Al Needleman. Al's a pharmaceutical inventor/manufacturer of nutritional supplements. Al had suggested it for times just like this, when Mia has difficulty breathing, so that the CoQ10 goes straight to her blood stream without delay. Mia pictured earlier this year at the Mardi Gras Barkus Parade in New Orleans' French Quarter (we'll be going again next year). Photo, below, of Gracie Breland and Mia. Photos by Barb Davis. It wasn't the flight that caused Mia's coughing; she has those bouts at home. It just happened to occur on the flight. Once she stopped coughing, she lay on my arm and fell asleep for the rest of the flight. I've been giving her a teaspoon of coconut oil twice a day instead of just in the morning, and that seems to be helping. She's doing well.

Mia's diagnosis and holistic treatment

Okay, down to the business of Mia's background. She was diagnosed with mitral valve prolapse -- a death sentence for dogs -- in December 2006. She turned lethargic so I took her to the vet. After X-rays, blood work-up and a sonogram, I was given the bad news: She had severe MVP, her heart was enlarged, and she had six months to live. The good news, however (and I tried to concentrate on that) was that she was not yet in congestive heart failure. My goal was to stave off congestive heart failure as long as I could. Mia was put on Enalapril, an ACE inhibitor, and lasix, a beta blocker. I went home and hit the Internet, searching for remedies -- mainstream and alternative. I also spoke with two holistic veterinarians I'd met at Best Friends' triage center in Mississippi, where they volunteered following Hurricane Katrina. I spoke to a friend, who had just entered naturopathic pre-med school, and he told me, "Take her off of the blood pressure medicine. The side effects are too risky." I lowered her dose but continued giving it to her. I was hesitant, because many of the data I was finding recommended the meds. I decreased her activity level, because the vet had recommended it. Then my friend later suggested I give Mia coconut water daily. That was the summer of 2007. The results were astounding. In the middle of triple-digit heat, when Mia had trouble breathing at times, her symptoms and asthma disappeared. I then began weaning her off the meds. Next, my sister told me about coconut oil -- organic -- and the benefits. I checked for myself, then went to Whole Foods and bought it. I gave Mia COQ10, hawthorn and probiotics. She did great for a few months. Six months later, the sonogram showed that her heart had actually decreased in size. Then, a few months later, Mia began coughing again and having difficulty breathing, mostly at night and first thing in the morning. I researched COQ10 as an alternative treatment some more, and, in the process, found a pediatric study of mitral valve prolapse. I couldn't find a study done on dogs, so this was the closest thing to scientific research for treatment of Mia. It said exercise was actually good and could help keep the heart strong, so I let Mia do whatever she wanted to do -- if she wanted to run, I let her. If she wanted to stop and came over to me, I picked her up. Then I found this study. I started giving Mia Taurine. I recently talked to someone who was familiar with supplements, and she suggested I put Mia on L-carnitine and the ubiquinol form of COQ10. I saw an immediate improvement in her energy and activity levels. It took about two weeks for it to kick in. She had a bad bout for several weeks. They included panic attacks when she couldn't breathe well. Now, I prop her up against my arm, half standing, rub her chest and it goes away. It's really just a matter of taking her mind off of it. Now, all I have to say to her is, "Settle, Mia. You're okay," the panic attack stops and she breathes normally again. So, that's it in a nutshell -- kind of the CliffsNotes version. One thing, I recently boarded her at my local vet, in a three-dog run with my other two, and when I got home Mia was so upset. She regressed and had a terrible time breathing for about a week. I increased her COQ10 to three times a day (100 mg each capsule), and I now try to take her with me. I do take Woody and Rosy with me too when I can. I rarely went without them until my book tour started, and I couldn't take them with me. Now that it's winding down, we'll get back to our usual routine. I go to southern Utah a lot, and they're always with me there (they love hotel rooms and are great car travelers).

Doggy drinking-fountain etiquette

Mia, as seen in this video, is as feisty as ever, despite her medical condition. In this video clip, taken in the summer, Mia gets bossy with Hollywood, my 95-pound Mastiff-yellow lab mix. Pay close attention in the beginning to when she looks above her head as Woody approaches the drinking fountain. Being the sweet boy he is, Hollywood just rolls with it and backs away, moving to the other side. He knows Mia's behavior like the back of his paw! Today was a good day for Mia. She did well with just some coughing. Tonight I gave her an extra COQ10 capsule -- opened it and put the contents under her tongue -- and her asthmatic-like bout almost immediately stopped. More about that later.

Introducing Mia

Photo by Barb Davis Meet Mia, a five-year-old long-haired Chihuahua with severe mitral valve prolapse and a prominent heart murmur. She was rescued from 4 feet of water in New Orleans in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina by responders Jeff Popowich and Ethan Gurney with Best Friends Animal Society. This blog is Mia's treatment and progress report. I can't stop the disease, but I can improve Mia's quality of life while slowing it down and relieving the symptoms. I weaned her off of meds a year ago when I was told by her vet she would probably die of renal failure before the heart disease. Not necessarily a choice that all would agree to, but after careful consideration, that's what I did. Two years ago, she was given just six months to live. I hit the books, studied natural treatments, and put her on supplements. Today, Mia keeps the rest of my crew -- Woody and Rosy -- in line. Mia is a special, sweet little girl who has been through a lot. She has a huge will to live, loves people, loves dogs (after warming up to them). Mia's rescue from the water is included in Pawprints of Katrina. I'll keep you up to date on her mostly good days, her sometimes bad days and what I'm doing naturally to slow the progression of her disease. Please e-mail me with any suggestions. And feel free as well to share your own stories here! --Cathy Mia and Lois Lane wrestling while having a playdate at Lois' home. (Video compliments of Larry and Pat Donoho.)