Peer-reviewed veterinary case report
Steroid responsive meningitis-arteritis in Australian dogs 2013-2023
By Paterson, R & Brady, S·Published in Australian veterinary journal·2024·Small Animal Specialist Hospital, United Kingdom·View original on PubMed →
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Original publication title: Signalment, clinical characteristics and outcomes of an Australian population of dogs with steroid responsive meningitis-arteritis (SRMA) - 124 cases (2013-2023).
- Species:
- dog
Plain-English summary
A group of 124 dogs in Australia, including breeds like Golden Retrievers and Italian Greyhounds, were diagnosed with steroid responsive meningitis-arteritis (SRMA), which causes inflammation of the brain and spinal cord. Most of these dogs were male, and many showed symptoms like neck pain and fever. Treatment typically involved steroids, which helped most dogs recover, but about 38% experienced at least one relapse over six months, particularly among female dogs and certain breeds like Corgis. This study highlights the differences in breed susceptibility to SRMA in Australia compared to other countries.
People also search for: dog neck pain treatment · Corgi meningitis symptoms · Golden Retriever SRMA recovery
Abstract
Variations in canine breeds presenting with steroid responsive meningitis-arteritis (SRMA) have been observed across different geographical regions internationally. However, there are no published studies describing affected dogs in an Australian population to date. This descriptive study aimed to characterise the signalment, as well as the clinical characteristics and outcomes in an Australian population of client-owned dogs with SRMA. Medical records from five veterinary referral hospitals in the state of New South Wales between 2013 and 2023 were retrospectively reviewed. One hundred and twenty four dogs were included in the study. The breeds which presented with SRMA most commonly included Golden Retriever (19/124, 15.3%), Italian Greyhound (11/124, 8.8%), Boxer (8/124, 6.5%), "Cavoodle" (Cavalier King Charles Spaniel x Poodle) (8/124, 6.5%), Corgi (7/124, 5.6%), Border Collie (6/124, 4.8%) and Australian Kelpie (5/124, 4.0%). The disease was observed more commonly in males, representing 79/124 (63.7%) of dogs. Presenting concerns, examination findings and laboratory abnormalities were otherwise consistent with international studies. The frequency of ≥1 relapse for dogs with a ≥6-month follow-up period was 32/85 (37.6%). A higher frequency of ≥1 relapse was seen in female dogs and in Corgi and Italian Greyhound breeds. All Corgis who relapsed demonstrated multiple relapses. In conclusion, this study observed a variation in breeds presenting with SRMA compared to international publications, which may reflect both differences in breed popularity, as well as varying interbreed susceptibility dependent on geographical location.
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Search related cases →Original publication on PubMed: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/39380286/