Peer-reviewed veterinary case report
German Shepherd puppy with muscle weakness
By Paciello, O et al.·Published in Veterinary pathology·2003·Dipartimento di Patologia e Sanità, Italy·View original on PubMed →
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Original publication title: Mitochondrial myopathy in a german shepherd dog.
- Species:
- dog
Plain-English summary
A 9-month-old male German Shepherd was brought in because he was having trouble exercising and showed a stiff, awkward walk. The vet found that his muscles were weak and had lost mass, and blood tests indicated muscle disease. A muscle biopsy showed abnormal mitochondria, which are the energy-producing parts of cells, and other signs of muscle damage. Unfortunately, the specific treatment for this type of muscle disease wasn't detailed, but understanding the condition can help guide future care and management for the dog.
People also search for: German Shepherd exercise intolerance · dog muscle disease symptoms · treatment for dog mitochondrial myopathy
Abstract
A 9-month-old male German Shepherd dog was referred for evaluation of progressive exercise intolerance. Clinical examination revealed a stiff, stilted gait and marked atrophy and hypotonia of skeletal muscle. The dog had raised creatine kinase (181 U/liter), lactate dehydrogenase (510 U/liter), and aspartate aminotransferase (123.6 U/liter) levels, suggesting a muscle disease. Histochemical evaluation of muscle biopsies revealed the presence of subsarcolemmal oxidative activity, reduced nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide, and succinate dehydrogenase, and the absence of cytochrome oxidase activity. Ragged red fibers were demonstrated with Gomori trichrome stain. Ultrastructural examination of the muscle confirmed the presence of subsarcolemmal accumulations of mitochondria and morphologically atypical mitochondria.
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Search related cases →Original publication on PubMed: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/12949407/