Peer-reviewed veterinary case report
Hippocampal asymmetry found in some dogs with idiopathic epilepsy
By Estey, Chelsie M et al.·Published in Frontiers in veterinary science·2017·Department of Clinical Sciences, United States·View original on PubMed →
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Original publication title: A Subset of Dogs with Presumptive Idiopathic Epilepsy Show Hippocampal Asymmetry: A Volumetric Comparison with Non-Epileptic Dogs Using MRI.
- Species:
- dog
Plain-English summary
A group of dogs with suspected idiopathic epilepsy (a type of seizure disorder) underwent MRI scans to see if they had differences in brain structure compared to dogs without epilepsy. The results showed that while the overall size of the hippocampus (a brain area involved in memory) was similar in both groups, the dogs with epilepsy had more noticeable asymmetry between the two sides of their hippocampus. This finding suggests that some dogs with epilepsy might have structural changes in their brains. Understanding these differences could help veterinarians better diagnose and treat epilepsy in dogs.
People also search for: dog seizure causes · idiopathic epilepsy in dogs · MRI for dog seizures · dog brain structure epilepsy
Abstract
MRI-acquired volumetric measurements from 100 dogs with presumptive idiopathic epilepsy (IE) and 41 non-epileptic (non-IE) dogs were used to determine if hippocampal asymmetry exists in the IE as compared to the non-IE dogs. MRI databases from three institutions were searched for dogs that underwent MRI of the brain and were determined to have IE and those that were considered non-IE dogs. Volumes of the right and left hippocampi were measured using Mimicssoftware. Median hippocampal volumes of IE and non-IE dogs were 0.47 and 0.53 cm, respectively. There was no significant difference in overall hippocampal volume between IE and non-IE dogs; however, IE dogs had greater hippocampal asymmetry than non-IE dogs ( < 0.012). A threshold value of 1.16 from the hippocampal ratio had an 85% specificity for identifying IE-associated asymmetry. Thirty five percent of IE dogs had a hippocampal ratio >1.16. Asymmetry was not associated with any particular hemisphere ( = 0.67). Our study indicates that hippocampal asymmetry occurs in a subset of dogs with presumptive idiopathic/genetic epilepsy, suggesting a structural etiology to some cases of IE.
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Search related cases →Original publication on PubMed: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/29167797/