Morphometric study of the heart of ostrich (Struthio camelus)

Abstract

The increase of ostrich in Brazil was due to current legislation, Ordinance 36, n0 15 March 2002, where the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food Supply (MAPA) ranks in the context of ostrich poultry industry, not being considered, an exotic bird, but domestic. Ostriches are subject to many diseases that also affect poultry. Scientific knowledge about diseases of ostriches is incomplete and fragmented, and specific details on aspects of disease diagnosis, among other topics, is completely absent in most cases. Given this context, this study intended to evaluate the cardiac morphology of six ostriches by measuring the perimeters: the left and right atrioventricular valves, as well as the aortic valve and the pulmonary valve and the coronary. Were also measured the thickness of the ventricular wall thickness of left and right ventricles, and the distance to the apex of the coronary heart disease. The morphometric data become relevant due to lack of data in the literature regarding cardiac anatomy of owls.