Peer-reviewed veterinary case report
No evidence of orthoflavivirus infection in Dutch dogs with brain
By Santifort, Koen M et al.·Published in Journal of veterinary diagnostic investigation : official publication of the American Association of Veterinary Laboratory Diagnosticians, Inc·2025·IVC Evidensia Small Animal Referral Hospital Arnhem, Netherlands·View original on PubMed →
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Original publication title: Lack of serologic evidence of orthoflavivirus infection in dogs with meningoencephalitis of unknown origin and steroid-responsive meningitis-arteritis in the Netherlands.
- Species:
- dog
Plain-English summary
Twelve dogs in the Netherlands, aged 1 to 11 years, were diagnosed with meningoencephalitis of unknown origin (MUO) or steroid-responsive meningitis-arteritis (SRMA) and showed symptoms like neurological issues. Despite thorough testing for orthoflavivirus infections, including West Nile virus and others, all dogs tested negative for these viruses. This means that the cause of their conditions remains unclear, and no viral infection was found to be responsible. Treatment for these conditions typically involves steroids, which can help manage symptoms effectively.
People also search for: dog meningoencephalitis symptoms · SRMA treatment in dogs · dog neurological issues causes
Abstract
The pathogenesis of meningoencephalomyelitis of unknown origin (MUO) and steroid-responsive meningitis-arteritis (SRMA) in dogs remains enigmatic. Numerous studies have attempted and failed to identify (viral) pathogens in samples from MUO- or SRMA-diagnosed dogs. Orthoflavivirus-associated meningoencephalitis or meningoencephalomyelitis has been diagnosed in dogs in several European countries. We investigated serologic evidence for orthoflavivirus infection in dogs with clinical diagnoses of MUO or SRMA in the Netherlands. Twelve dogs with a clinical diagnosis of MUO based on signalment, neurologic examination, MRI studies, CSF analysis, and response to treatment were included in the study (age range: 1-11 y; 4 females, 8 males; weight range: 8-44 kg). Serum samples from all 12 dogs tested negative in a commercial competitive ELISA and virus neutralization tests for West Nile virus, Usutu virus, and tick-borne encephalitis virus. We did not find serologic evidence of orthoflavivirus infection in dogs with MUO or SRMA in the Netherlands.
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Search related cases →Original publication on PubMed: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/40396364/