Breed-Specific Clinical Features, Diagnostic Findings, and Outcome of Presumptive Meningoencephalomyelitis of Unknown Origin in 27 French Bulldogs
Meningoencephalomyelitis of unknown origin (MUO) is an inflammatory central nervous system disease affecting the meninges, brain, and spinal cord. Interest in this condition has been growing rapidly over the last decade, but information on the pathophysiology and evolution of the disease is still la...
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2025-01-01
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| author | Evelina Burbaite Erica Fiorentino Greta Galli Antonella Gallucci Federica Tirrito Gualtiero Gandini Samuel Okonji Marika Menchetti |
| author_facet | Evelina Burbaite Erica Fiorentino Greta Galli Antonella Gallucci Federica Tirrito Gualtiero Gandini Samuel Okonji Marika Menchetti |
| author_sort | Evelina Burbaite |
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| description | Meningoencephalomyelitis of unknown origin (MUO) is an inflammatory central nervous system disease affecting the meninges, brain, and spinal cord. Interest in this condition has been growing rapidly over the last decade, but information on the pathophysiology and evolution of the disease is still lacking. This study aimed to assess and evaluate the clinical findings, magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) features, and survival time in affected French Bulldogs (FBs). A total of 27 client-owned FBs met the inclusion criteria. The highest percentage of animals were affected by acute blindness and cervical pain, representing 25.9% (<i>n</i> = 7) each. Via MRI, 44.4% of FBs showed signs of perilesional parenchymal brain edema. Midline shift was observed in 11.1% of dogs, and 7.4% displayed foramen magnum cerebellar herniation. The cerebrospinal fluid examination was considered normal in 34.8% of dogs. Five (18.5%) dogs died during the treatment. Close to two-thirds (63.0%) were still alive during the study data collection (median survival time, 775 days), displaying an overall good survival time. The presence of epileptic seizures, midline shift, and relapse of clinical signs were factors associated with higher mortality rate (<i>p</i> < 0.05) and might be prognostic factors for worse survival in French Bulldogs with MUO. |
| format | Article |
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| institution | OA Journals |
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| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-01-01 |
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| spelling | doaj-art-c2e2127ec6174cda9fffe57a87fe184b2025-08-20T02:03:31ZengMDPI AGVeterinary Sciences2306-73812025-01-011228310.3390/vetsci12020083Breed-Specific Clinical Features, Diagnostic Findings, and Outcome of Presumptive Meningoencephalomyelitis of Unknown Origin in 27 French BulldogsEvelina Burbaite0Erica Fiorentino1Greta Galli2Antonella Gallucci3Federica Tirrito4Gualtiero Gandini5Samuel Okonji6Marika Menchetti7Neurology and Neurosurgery Division, San Marco Veterinary Clinic, 35030 Veggiano, ItalyNeurology and Neurosurgery Division, San Marco Veterinary Clinic, 35030 Veggiano, ItalyNeurology and Neurosurgery Division, San Marco Veterinary Clinic, 35030 Veggiano, ItalyNeurological Veterinary Center La Fenice, 09047 Selargius, ItalyAniCura Istituto Veterinario di Novara, 28060 Novara, ItalyDepartment of Veterinary Medical Science, University of Bologna, 47181 Bologna, ItalyDepartment of Veterinary Medical Science, University of Bologna, 47181 Bologna, ItalyNeurology and Neurosurgery Division, San Marco Veterinary Clinic, 35030 Veggiano, ItalyMeningoencephalomyelitis of unknown origin (MUO) is an inflammatory central nervous system disease affecting the meninges, brain, and spinal cord. Interest in this condition has been growing rapidly over the last decade, but information on the pathophysiology and evolution of the disease is still lacking. This study aimed to assess and evaluate the clinical findings, magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) features, and survival time in affected French Bulldogs (FBs). A total of 27 client-owned FBs met the inclusion criteria. The highest percentage of animals were affected by acute blindness and cervical pain, representing 25.9% (<i>n</i> = 7) each. Via MRI, 44.4% of FBs showed signs of perilesional parenchymal brain edema. Midline shift was observed in 11.1% of dogs, and 7.4% displayed foramen magnum cerebellar herniation. The cerebrospinal fluid examination was considered normal in 34.8% of dogs. Five (18.5%) dogs died during the treatment. Close to two-thirds (63.0%) were still alive during the study data collection (median survival time, 775 days), displaying an overall good survival time. The presence of epileptic seizures, midline shift, and relapse of clinical signs were factors associated with higher mortality rate (<i>p</i> < 0.05) and might be prognostic factors for worse survival in French Bulldogs with MUO.https://www.mdpi.com/2306-7381/12/2/83meningoencephalomyelitismagnetic resonance imagingcerebrospinal fluiddogveterinary neurology |
| spellingShingle | Evelina Burbaite Erica Fiorentino Greta Galli Antonella Gallucci Federica Tirrito Gualtiero Gandini Samuel Okonji Marika Menchetti Breed-Specific Clinical Features, Diagnostic Findings, and Outcome of Presumptive Meningoencephalomyelitis of Unknown Origin in 27 French Bulldogs Veterinary Sciences meningoencephalomyelitis magnetic resonance imaging cerebrospinal fluid dog veterinary neurology |
| title | Breed-Specific Clinical Features, Diagnostic Findings, and Outcome of Presumptive Meningoencephalomyelitis of Unknown Origin in 27 French Bulldogs |
| title_full | Breed-Specific Clinical Features, Diagnostic Findings, and Outcome of Presumptive Meningoencephalomyelitis of Unknown Origin in 27 French Bulldogs |
| title_fullStr | Breed-Specific Clinical Features, Diagnostic Findings, and Outcome of Presumptive Meningoencephalomyelitis of Unknown Origin in 27 French Bulldogs |
| title_full_unstemmed | Breed-Specific Clinical Features, Diagnostic Findings, and Outcome of Presumptive Meningoencephalomyelitis of Unknown Origin in 27 French Bulldogs |
| title_short | Breed-Specific Clinical Features, Diagnostic Findings, and Outcome of Presumptive Meningoencephalomyelitis of Unknown Origin in 27 French Bulldogs |
| title_sort | breed specific clinical features diagnostic findings and outcome of presumptive meningoencephalomyelitis of unknown origin in 27 french bulldogs |
| topic | meningoencephalomyelitis magnetic resonance imaging cerebrospinal fluid dog veterinary neurology |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2306-7381/12/2/83 |
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