Patient
Tyler, 9-year-old male neutered Golden Retriever

Presenting Complaint
Congestive heart failure.  Cardiac ultrasonography identified the cause as pericardial effusion.  In contrast to Shaq, a tumor was found to be associated with the right atrium.  Since the disease signs are produced by the pericardium effusion, resection of the pericardium can prolonged a high quality of life.  Long-term survival depends on the type of tumor (cancer).  The shortest survival times are associated with hemangiosarcoma, whereas a heart base tumor may have many months of comfortable life.

Endoscopic Technique
Thoracoscopic resection of a portion of the pericardium, followed by examination of the inside of the pericardium and the heart..  A hemangiosarcoma appeared to be attached to the right atrium.

Benefits of using endoscopy
The use of thoracoscopy used 4 small incisions and avoided the need for a traditional thoracotomy and the use of chest retractors.  This is one of the strongest justification for minimally invasive surgery as stress has been confirmed to be less than with traditional chest surgery.

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