Peer-reviewed veterinary case report
Signs of brain issues in dogs and cats with high blood pressure
By O'Neill, Jeremy et al.·Published in Journal of the American Animal Hospital Association·2013·Department of Small Animal Medicine and Surgery, United States·View original on PubMed →
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Original publication title: Clinicopathologic and MRI characteristics of presumptive hypertensive encephalopathy in two cats and two dogs.
Plain-English summary
Two dogs and two cats were brought in with sudden changes in behavior, difficulty standing, and blindness. They all had high blood pressure, which was linked to kidney disease in three of the animals. MRI scans showed brain swelling and other issues, and one pet had bleeding in the brain. The veterinarians treated the high blood pressure with medications like amlodipine and enalapril, leading to noticeable improvements in their neurological symptoms within 24 to 48 hours. Most pets showed a good recovery after their blood pressure was brought back to normal.
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Abstract
Two dogs and two cats were evaluated for the acute-onset of abnormal mentation, recumbency, and blindness. All cases had systemic hypertension, ranging from 180 mm Hg to 260 mm Hg. MRI of the brain disclosed noncontrast-enhancing, ill-defined, T2-weighted (T2W) hyperintensities in the white matter of the cerebrum in the areas of the frontal, parietal, temporal, and occipital lobes. Lesions were also observed in the caudate nuclei and thalamus (n = 1 in each). Intracranial hemorrhage was observed in one animal. Diffusion-weighted imaging (DWI) was consistent with vasogenic edema in two animals. Retinal lesions were observed in three animals. Hypertension was secondary to renal disease in three animals. A primary underlying disorder was not identified in one animal. Normalization of blood pressure was achieved with amlodipine either alone or in combination with enalapril. In one cat, hypertension spontaneously resolved. In three cases, neurologic improvement occurred within 24-48 hr of normalization of blood pressure. The presumptive diagnosis of hypertensive encephalopathy was supported by the MRI findings and neurologic dysfunction coincident with systemic hypertension in which the neurologic dysfunction improved with treatment of hypertension. The prognosis appears good for the resolution of neurologic deficits with normalization of blood pressure in animals with hypertensive encephalopathy.
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Search related cases →Original publication on PubMed: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/24051253/