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My dog has heart disease. Is anesthesia safe for dental cleaning?

Updated On September 23rd, 2025

Pet's info: Dog | Papillon | Male | neutered | 9 years and 9 months old

I have a 10 yr old Papillon 3 yrs ago a heart murmur was detected and it was determined that he has degenerative mitral valve disease His yearly heart checkup indicates LA mod dilated and mitral valve mod thickened Systolic function of LV normal. Mod jet of mitral regurg. Progressive LA dilation, no meds recmnd My primary vet rcmnd a dental for him but cardio says no unless severe dental disease present due to risk of fluid build up during procedure Would like 2nd opinion on safety of anesthes.

2 Answers

Most Helpful Answer

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Answered By Vanessa Yeager DVM MPH

Veterinarian

Published on October 24th, 2017

Hi there and thanks for posting. I would tend to agree with the cardiologist on this one. Having a heart issue does place a greater risk of complication during anesthesia. I would recommend against it unless he dental disease is severe as the cardiologist has recommended. Best wishes to you and Rascal!

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    Answered By Sara Farmer, DVM

    Veterinarian

    Published on December 15th, 2019

    Ideally Chhutki would have an echocardiogram performed first to determine the type of heart disease present and to get a better feel for the risk under anesthesia, but I'm not sure if that's an option near you. The risk would be for congestive heart failure to develop, low blood pressure, or even for fatal complications under anesthesia. Heart safe medications should be used - here that would mean avoiding drugs like acepromazine and dexmedetomidine but again I'm not sure what drugs are standard near you. Blood pressure and vital signs should be monitored closely during anesthesia. You may want to ask your vet if referral to a specialist might be an option.

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I have already discussed this with my Vet but I would like your opinion on this subject. Dolly has an enlarged heart . Should she get teeth cleaned?
Hi, Sorry to hear Dolly has this heart issue. Anesthesia is always risky, even for perfectly healthy pets. It puts a lot of responsibility for the heart to maintain adequate blood pressure and anesthesia is generally more risky with any heart issues than normal anesthesia. I would recommend that if the teeth just need a general cleaning, to not undergo the procedure and just maintain good dental health by brushing with doggie tooth paste and giving dental chews. If the teeth have a major issue such as a fracture or extraction that is necessary to address, it becomes balancing the risks of leaving a tooth inside that should come out, versus the risks of anesthesia. To fully assess the heart you can get an echocardiogram performed by a cardiologist and consult with them about anesthetic risks. Although if the teeth are fine otherwise, I'd say just maintain vigilant dental health and Dolly will be fine. Hope this helps! -Dr. Gordon
Updated on September 24th, 2025
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My dog is 9 yes old n is having heart issues.her last tooth lower jaw extreme last is loose.having dental cleaning done under anesthesia can lead to what risks?how to completely remove those risks?what r do's n don'ts to b followed before anesthesia
Ideally Chhutki would have an echocardiogram performed first to determine the type of heart disease present and to get a better feel for the risk under anesthesia, but I'm not sure if that's an option near you. The risk would be for congestive heart failure to develop, low blood pressure, or even for fatal complications under anesthesia. Heart safe medications should be used - here that would mean avoiding drugs like acepromazine and dexmedetomidine but again I'm not sure what drugs are standard near you. Blood pressure and vital signs should be monitored closely during anesthesia. You may want to ask your vet if referral to a specialist might be an option.
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Is there any way to clean teeth of my dog having tartar build up very strong without anesthesia?my dog is having heart issues n so it can be risky.plz suggest some solution without anesthesia.
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My dog has a heart murmur and needs a operation to remove rotten teeth, what other options do I have other than operation where my dog might die in operation?
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Hello and welcome to Boop by Petco. Once dental disease and tartar is present, it is very difficult to remove the smell without a dental procedure to clean the teeth. With the collapsing trachea this does increase the risk of anaesthesia, so you should discuss this risk with your vet. You can try Hill's T/D dental forumula, it works very well at preventing more tartar build-up but won't help what is presently there. It might help with the breath a bit as it has some enzymes present that help. There are also water additive products that help with the smell of the mouth, and you can ask your vet about these products and what is available in your area. I think you should talk with your vet about the risks of anaesthesia, and also try the other methods to see if you can get the dental disease under control. It might be better to have another cleaning now however, before Rudy Sue's collapsing trachea gets worse. I would discuss this aspect with your vet as well. Best of luck wi
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My dog has a very brown tooth and very bad breath. She’s got a few others brown, but there’s one on the left side that’s all brown. Sometimes I see a bit of brown gunk on her lip that I clean with a tissue and the tissue comes out brown. I’m not sure
Age is not a disease in of itself. You will need to speak to your vet about whether or not it would be advisable to put her under anesthesia for a cleaning. Without her medical history it is difficult for me to say. If your vet does not feel it is safe, you should speak to them about the possibility of doing what is called "pulse therapy antibiotics" where you give her antibiotics for one week of every month to help keep the bacterial load down in her mouth. Hope this helps. Best wishes!
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