I am Barbara Natterson-Horowitz – cardiologist, Director of Imaging at the UCLA Cardiac Arrhythmia Center, cardiac consultant for the LA Zoo, member of the Zoo's Medical Advisory Board & co-author of Zoobiquity: The Astonishing Connection Betw...

Which animal (s) that are currently in zoos do you believe should be in their natural habitat. I ask as a Canadian who knows we have been criticized for having elephants (as well as other animals) in our zoos because of our winter climate.

An interesting and complex question. I'll have to think this one through.

I have a medical question for you. I was taught in Paramedic school that Atrial re polarization isn't seen on a heart monitor because it's hidden in the QRS complex. However, I have seen plenty of third degree heart blocks where the P Waves and QRS complex's are completely disassociated. When this happens in a third degree heart block, I have never seen any type of electrical activity that could be considered atrial re polarization. It almost seems as if the Atria re polarize on their own, however I know that this is impossible. Could you shed some light on why Atrial Re polarization can't be seen, even in a third degree heart block with complete dissociation between the P waves and the QRS complex's? It's been bugging me a while now and I would really appreciate your professional opinion! :-)

Also, I had the pleasure of being able to participate in the cadaver lab for the Paramedic students at UCLA even though I wasn't a student at UCLA. I knew one of the doctors that was in charge of it and he invited me and it was one of the most amazing experiences of my life!

This is a great question. There are lots of great basic EKG books that deal with this issue. One of the best books is out of print - Dr. Stephen Scheidt's book on EKG has natter diagrams and is very clear on these topics.

My background is in human physiology/pharmacology. I would love to read your book and I'm sure it would answer most of the questions that immediately come to mind. But basically, what do you think is something currently applied in the care of animals that could potentially be applied/studied in care of human patients?

There’s a sudden death syndrome seen in wild animals that has linkages to sudden death in people. The conserved physiology of the autonomic nervous system is seen in diverse species ranging from birds to great apes. This means that physicians should expand their knowledge beyond the one species they’re used to taking care of.

I'm also in the imaging field and have been passionate about animals, any tips on how to get into that side medical imaging?

I believe some sonography schools specialize in veterinary imaging.

Were you recently on npr? The first paragraph in your post sounds like the exact thing I heard on there yesterday. Also why does my chest hurt sometimes? I don't wanna have a heart attack...

Yes, I was on NPR. If you’re having chest pain, you should go to an emergency room and/or contact your physician.

Whats is the most spread animal disease

There are many diseases that can spread between animals -- non-human animals to people and people to non-human animals. Not completely sure off the top of my head which disease is most prevalent.

Hi Barbara. Your life work is very interesting to all of us and I have several questions I could ask but in order for this event to work you need to let us know how and when you will be answering our questions. People won't want to ask a question if they don't think it will be answered. Thank you!

Very sorry for the delay! -Barbara

Hi -- Kathryn here -- You are absolutely right! We're new to Reddit and weren't completely clear on the culture of asking and answering questions. We're figuring that out now -- so sorry for the long silence More to come....

Hello, I was wondering if you are in need of skilled cardiac sonographer? I would love to apply my imaging skills in a zoological setting.

Thank you for your solicitation. I don't know of any positions available at this time.

Is there any software/app or improvement in existing software/app that would help with your job?

Great question! Hmm... I have to think about it.

pleeease. I really want to know,

These days, how hard is it, actually, to find a good heart?

Hmm... an interesting question!

I wanna know more about those reindeer and the shrooms. How do we know they're just not eating it for food and how do we know they're tripping?

It’s an excellent question as to why these animals are consuming these psychoactive plants. More research needs to be done to see if the animal is consuming it for nutrition or its psychoactive effects.

Hi! The summer before my freshman year of high school, I was diagnosed with bells paulsy (which is gone now), and later Lyme disease. However, my Lyme manifested with a prolonged QT interval, bariochardia (the slow heart beat), and a passed out. The weird part: noone in my family has a history of prolonged QT intervals. According to CHOP, only 4 other cases even remotely similar to mine have happened since the dawn of stored computer medical records. What is your opinion on the likelihood of this happening to someone else or myself additionally in the future? Also, I'm 17 and slightly chubby :) but otherwise healthy now.

It sounds like you have a lot going on for someone so young. I recommend you talking to your doctor about your specific prognosis.

what's your favorite kind of muffin?

Carrot.

What would the heart of a horse sized duck be like in comparison to the heart of a duck sized horse? Would there be any difference besides size? Would the duck sized horse need a more powerful heart than the horse sized duck because of being more active?

Haha. Great question. :)

GOOO BRUINS!

Go Bruins! :)

A while ago, I heard of a promising imaging technology that measures calcium deposits to determine coronary blockage. Can you recommend it.

You should discuss this form of imaging with your doctor.

Hi, I listened to the interview you had on The People's Pharmacy, and my wife (who is a vet student) and I enjoyed it very much.

It seems that veterinarians are so much more aware of the connections between human and animal health, and that One Health/One Medicine is a much bigger thing in veterinary medicine than in human medicine. My question is, what can the veterinary community do to reach out to the human medical community and engage them on this issue?

Also, regarding reddit etiquette: It is not sufficient proof to link to your website. Anybody could come on here claiming to be you and link to your website. However, if you linked to a post on your website that said you were doing an AMA on reddit, that would be sufficient proof.

This is a great question. Veterinarians are the bearers of comparative knowledge in medicine. I recommend that veterinarians make an effort to participate in local medical meetings. I like to invite veterinary subspecialists to join journal clubs and other educational ventures at the university. I also encourage veterinarians to join physicians at the Zoobiquity Conferences which are explicitly designed to engage the two professional communities.

Third year Med student here: How do I learn to read EKGs well?

I'd recommend an out-of-print book by Dr. Stephen Scheidt - Basic ECG.

I'm graduating in 2 months with a degree in natural science with a focus in biology and health science. Hire me. KTHNX

So sorry, I'm not hiring at this time.

Many would say that the future of interventional cardiology or even general cards is not particularly bright right now. I'm a current medical student and just wondering what your thoughts on this subject are.

I think cardiology is a wonderful field with fantastic potential for future cardiovascular clinicians and investigators.

I have supraventricular tachycardia (for those not in the medical field: a heart rate of around 200 at random times). After two (!) radiofrequency ablations, I only have brief episodes and am off heart medications. Much respect to those of you in the field - people like you have changed my life!

Glad to hear you're feeling better!

Do you know Anthony Horowitz?

The author? Unfortunately, no relation.

Kind of morbid, but if a cow who has like 9 hearts, has myocardial infarct in one heart, do the rest compensate like if one engine on a jumbo jet were to go out?

What an interesting question! I don’t have an answer for you but will ask my veterinary colleagues.