Clinical features, imaging characteristics and long-term outcome of dogs with cranial meningocele or meningoencephalocele

Lazzerini, K. et al. (2017) Clinical features, imaging characteristics and long-term outcome of dogs with cranial meningocele or meningoencephalocele. Journal of Veterinary Internal Medicine, 31(2), pp. 505-512. (doi: 10.1111/jvim.14638) (PMID:28247440) (PMCID:PMC5354015)

Abstract

Background: The term meningoencephalocele (MEC) describes a herniation of cerebral tissue and meninges through a defect in the cranium, whereas a meningocele (MC) is a herniation of the meninges alone. Hypothesis/Objectives: To describe the clinical features, magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) characteristics, and outcomes of dogs with cranial MC and MEC. Animals: Twenty-two client-owned dogs diagnosed with cranial MC or MEC. Methods: Multicentric retrospective descriptive study. Clinical records of 13 institutions were reviewed. Signalment, clinical history, neurologic findings and MRI characteristics as well as treatment and outcome were recorded and evaluated. Results: Most affected dogs were presented at a young age (median, 6.5 months; range, 1 month – 8 years). The most common presenting complaints were seizures and behavioral abnormalities. Intranasal MEC was more common than parietal MC. Magnetic resonance imaging identified meningeal enhancement of the protruded tissue in 77% of the cases. Porencephaly was seen in all cases with parietal MC. Cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) analysis identified mild abnormalities in 4 of 11 cases. Surgery was not performed in any affected dog. Seventeen patients were treated medically, and seizures were adequately controlled with anti-epileptic drugs in 10 dogs. Dogs with intranasal MEC and mild neurologic signs had a fair prognosis with medical treatment. Conclusion and clinical importance: Although uncommon, MC and MEC should be considered as a differential diagnosis in young dogs presenting with seizures or alterations in behavior. Medical treatment is a valid option with a fair prognosis when the neurologic signs are mild.

• Item Type: Articles
• Status: Published
• Refereed: Yes
• Glasgow Author(s) Enlighten ID: Penderis, Professor Jacques and Guevar, Mr Julien and Jose-Lopez, Mr Roberto
• Authors: Lazzerini, K., Gutierrez-Quintana, R., José-López, R., McConnell, F., Gonçalves, R., McMurrough, J., De Decker, S., Muir, C., Priestnall, S.L., Mari, L., Stabile, F., De Risio, L., Loeffler, C., Tauro, A., Rusbridge, C., Rodenas, S., Añor, S., de la Fuente, C., Fischer, A., Bruehschwein, A., Penderis, J., and Guevar, J.
• College/School: College of Medical Veterinary and Life Sciences > School of Biodiversity, One Health & Veterinary Medicine
• Journal Name: Journal of Veterinary Internal Medicine
• Publisher: American College of Veterinary Internal Medicine.
• ISSN: 0891-6640
• ISSN (Online): 1939-1676
• Published Online: 28 February 2017
• Copyright Holders: Copyright © 2017 The Authors
• First Published: First published in Journal of Veterinary Internal Medicine 31(2): 505-512
• Publisher Policy: Reproduced under a Creative Commons License