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Jan. 16, 2001
Researchers Investigate New Ways of Controlling Canine Epilepsy
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
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For dog owners whose pets have an inherited form of epilepsy, controlling the disease can be an expensive, time-consuming and emotionally draining proposition. Now, researchers at North Carolina State University’s College of Veterinary Medicine are investigating new forms of epilepsy treatment that could provide dogs with a better quality of life, and pet owners with an easier and potentially cheaper means of controlling the seizures.
According to Dr. Karen Munana, assistant professor of neurology at NC State, epilepsy is fairly common in dogs, and while the treatment options are similar to those used for humans -- medication being the most common -- as many as 30 percent of treated dogs continue to have seizures even after taking medication.
There are other complications as well. "One of the most common medications used to treat epilepsy, phenobarbital, is known to be damaging to the liver, so the drugs that we’re giving can have some pretty serious side effects," Munana said.
Two studies at the vet school right now are looking at alternative treatments. Both are aimed at treating idiopathic epilepsy, a form of the disease that is inherited and in which seizures are not triggered by underlying causes like trauma or tumors. |
One study, sponsored by a well-known dog food maker, is looking at a possible dietary connection, by altering the balance of nutrients in the dog food. Diet alternations already have been shown to help some humans reduce the number of seizures they have.
The study has been under way for about six months, but researchers say there are still six spots available for dogs who meet the study’s criteria. Dogs taking part in the study must have at least one seizure a month and already be on prescription anti-seizure medication. Dogs taking part will receive approximately $1,500 of free medical treatment and up to a year’s worth of free food. The study is scheduled to run for a year and a half.
Researchers are also looking at a high-tech approach to control canine seizures, using small pacemaker-like devices that are implanted into dogs who have a history of seizures. The electrical devices stimulate the vagus nerve that runs along the side of the neck. It’s a technique that has been used successfully to reduce human seizures, but scientists aren’t sure why it works.
The implanted devices are turned on and off with a wireless "programming wand" which is connected to a laptop computer. Implant batteries last between five and seven years, and replacement requires only a minor surgical procedure. Funding for the project comes from the Morris Animal Foundation, a nonprofit organization that funds veterinary research, and the maker of the implants, Cyberonics.
Ten dogs are being studied in this project, scheduled to be completed in March. Munana says that, on an individual basis, the early results appear promising. She says the implant would be most practical for pet owners whose dogs’ seizures are not well controlled through medication.
"These dogs are having multiple seizures a month. One dog is to the point where the owner actually needs to bring him to an emergency clinic about once every 30 days to be anesthetized to have his seizures controlled," she said.
Munana hopes the cost of the new procedure and implant can be kept to no more than $3,000. "It’s not going to be a cheap option, and it’s not for everyone," she said, "but for owners who are bringing their dogs into the emergency clinic every month -- they’ve already spent thousands of dollars. The owners of one dog in the study have been spending $300 a month on anti-convulsive medications. Compared to that, the cost of an implant doesn’t look too bad."
Canine epilepsy is breed related, and is seen in certain large-breed dogs like golden retrievers, German shepherds and Labradors, and in small-breed dogs like Shetland sheepdogs, poodles and beagles.
The dogs in Munana’s study all have idiopathic epilepsy, in which seizures are caused by an inherited disease that makes the cells in the dogs’ brains fire too frequently. Because it’s a non-fatal disease, dogs with idiopathic epilepsy can live a normal life span.
Neither of the alternative treatments now being investigated would replace the need for medication, Munana said, but each could help lower the amount medications needed, and perhaps offer better seizure control.
Pet owners who would like to learn more about the two research studies now being conducted at the vet school should contact Neurology Services at the NC State College of Veterinary Medicine at (919) 513-6692.
- thomas -
