Cardiology Service Beating Stronger Than Ever

Our cardiology service has performed minimally-invasive cardiovascular surgery on 44 dogs and one cat since its launch a year ago.

The team providing the life-changing service have also scanned the hearts of 700 dogs and cats from across central and southern England, who may not have had access to this treatment before our service was opened.

In addition to cardiac procedures, the team at Eastcott also offer surgical procedures to treat intrahepatic portosystemic shunts, airway collapse and tumour embolisation for inoperable cancer.

Significantly, the opening of the cardiology service at Eastcott, which also provides specialist ECG services, pacemaker implantation and advanced 3D imaging of the heart, has included the launch of a dedicated residency programme to train the next generation of veterinary specialists.

This three-year, intensive clinical training programme is accredited by the American College of Veterinary Internal Medicine and has dedicated time for collaborative teaching and clinical research, as well as attending national and international veterinary congresses.

Kieran Borgeat, Clinical Director and Head of Cardiology at Eastcott Veterinary Referrals, said: “The cardiology service at Eastcott is helping to support current and future pets with heart disease, and their owners, by both offering an excellent clinical service, and developing a future generation of pragmatic and skilled veterinary specialists, who combine excellent technical capabilities with a solid research interest.

“Through our service, we hope to be able to work alongside our multi-disciplinary team here at Eastcott in providing the best care for animals with cardiovascular disease.”

During his career, Kieran has published more than 30 scientific papers in peer-reviewed journals and written a large number of articles on cardiology for professional journals, as well as a textbook of case reports on cardiovascular imaging and a chapter for the 2024 edition of Ettinger’s Textbook of Veterinary Internal Medicine.

Caroline Cutler, a cardiology Certificate-holder and Eastcott’s first resident in cardiology, has already developed a strong interest in congenital heart disease and cardiac surgery, and is undertaking research based on this topic.