Letter from the Editor

JAAHA is proud to present two papers in this issue that herald significant advances in the treatment of two common clinical diseases in dogs: namely, chronic valvular disease and pituitary-dependent hyperadrenocorticism. Reports on the efficacy of pimobendan (for certain cardiac diseases) and trilostane (for hyperadrenocorticism) have been filtering into the United States for several years.

In the cardiology section of this issue, readers will find a multicenter report from Europe on the use of pimobendan for congestive heart failure secondary to chronic atrioventricular valvular disease in dogs. Results of this study are very promising and fuel hope that pimobendan may represent a breakthrough in the treatment of this debilitating disease.

The second paper examines the use of twice-daily trilostane for pituitary-dependent hyperadrenocorticism. This study was also performed in Europe, where the drug’s current recommended administration frequency is once daily. Results from this study were also very favorable and add to the knowledge base that is accumulating for this new therapy. Hyperadrenocorticism can be a challenging and frustrating disease to treat, and trilostane appears to be a viable alternative to mitotane.

We thank our European colleagues for sharing this information with our readers and look forward to future reports on their experiences with these drugs.