Pathogenesis of Single Right Coronary Artery and Pulmonic Stenosis in English Bulldogs

English Bulldogs are the most common breed to have pulmonic stenosis. Previous studies showed that this congenital heart abnormality in Bulldogs frequently is caused by a circumpulmonary left coronary artery originating from a single right coronary artery. Fetal anasarca also occurs often in Bulldogs and might represent congestive heart failure, but the cause is unknown. To determine if fetal anasarca is associated with a coronary anomaly and pulmonic stenosis, major coronary arteries were studied in 6 bulldog puppies with fetal anasarca. Five of the puppies had normal coronary arteries, and this led to the conclusion that fetal anasarca usually is not associated with major coronary abnormalities or pulmonic stenosis. The 6th puppy had single right coronary artery with circumpulmonary left coronary artery and moderate subvalvular pulmonic stenosis. Serial section histology suggests that the underlying cause of this syndrome is malformation of the left aortic sinus (of Valsalva) and inversion of the proximal segment of the left main coronary artery.