Peer-reviewed veterinary case report
Blood test to detect progressive spinal cord damage in dogs with disc
By Murthy, Vishal D et al.·Published in Journal of veterinary internal medicine·2021·Department of Surgical and Radiological Sciences, United States·View original on PubMed →
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Original publication title: Serum phosphorylated neurofilament heavy chain as a diagnostic biomarker for progressive myelomalacia in dogs with thoracolumbar intervertebral disc herniation.
- Species:
- dog
Plain-English summary
A group of dogs with severe back problems caused by a herniated disc were tested for a specific protein in their blood called phosphorylated neurofilament heavy chain (pNF-H) to see if it could help predict their recovery. The study found that dogs who developed a serious condition called progressive myelomalacia (PMM) had much higher levels of this protein after surgery compared to those who recovered. A pNF-H level of 31.39 ng/mL or higher was very effective at identifying dogs at risk for PMM. This suggests that measuring pNF-H could help vets diagnose this serious condition earlier and guide treatment decisions.
People also search for: dog back problems · herniated disc treatment in dogs · dog progressive myelomalacia symptoms
Abstract
BACKGROUND: Serum phosphorylated neurofilament-heavy chain (pNF-H) has not been longitudinally evaluated in dogs that develop progressive myelomalacia (PMM) after Type I intervertebral disc herniation (IVDH). OBJECTIVES: To determine if serum pNF-H concentrations would predict outcome of neuroligical disease in dogs with acute, severe thoracolumbar myelopathy secondary to Type I IVDH. ANIMALS: Thirty-nine client-owned dogs with thoracolumbar myelopathy secondary to IVDH. METHODS: Prospective controlled cohort study. Serum was collected from dogs undergoing hemilaminectomy at multiple timepoints. Final neurological status was established at 12 months and groups were stratified accordingly. Comparisons between outcome and pNF-H concentration at each timepoint was examined using Kruskal-Wallis analysis of variance on ranks and receiver operator characteristics curve analysis. RESULTS: Median serum pNF-H concentrations were not significantly different between deep pain negative dogs that did or did not recover at any timepoint (baseline: 0.37 ng/mL [0-0.9 ng/mL] vs 0 ng/mL [0-0.9 ng/mL], P > 1; 24 hours: 1.25 ng/mL [0.35-7.23 ng/mL] vs 1.53 ng/mL [0-11.94 ng/mL], P > 1; 48 hours: 1.22 ng/mL [0.63-6.62 ng/mL] vs 2.12 ng/mL [0-20.72 ng/mL], P >  1; 72 hours: 2.77 ng/mL [1.33-6.62 ng/mL] vs 16.69 ng/mL [4.02-40.12 ng/mL], P >  1). Dogs that developed PMM had significantly higher serum pNF-H concentrations after surgery compared to all other cohorts at 24 hours: 39.88 ng/mL (25.74-50.68 ng/mL); P < .05 and 72 hours: 223.9 ng/mL (155.4-263.7 ng/mL); P < .05. A serum pNF-H concentration ≥31.39 ng/mL was 83.33% sensitive and 100% specific for identifying PMM in this cohort. CONCLUSIONS AND CLINICAL IMPORTANCE: Serum pNF-H is a promising biomarker for antemortem diagnosis of PMM in dogs with acute, severe thoracolumbar myelopathy secondary to Type I IVDH.
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Search related cases →Original publication on PubMed: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/34476832/