Has your pet been diagnosed with epilepsy?? Did you know there are many types of epilepsy? Did you know the ONLY definitive way to diagnose epilepsy, of any type, is advanced neurodiagnostics? The general, or basic, types of epilepsy are: primary, secondary, idiopathic, cryptogenic. With by far the most common being idiopathic (meaning no identifiable cause for the seizures), in canine and human patients. The age range is also similar with our canine patients at the age of onset of seizures being one to six years old, whilst humans generally start seizuring the second to third decade of life (or 2-5.5 dog years). The other types of epilepsy listed are associated with genetics (primary), a grossly identifiable cause for seizures like a brain tumor (secondary), or age (cryptogenic, >6yrs). If your pet has been diagnosed with epilepsy, more specifically idiopathic epilepsy, without magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) of the brain and/or a cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) analysis then they have not been properly diagnosed. MRI allows a 2D view (with 3D conversion available) of all divisions of the brain, as well as soft tissue and bony structures of the head. For instance, the only way to diagnose an inner/middle ear infection is via MRI, as this allows evaluation of these structures. If you are interested in these diagnostics, the VREC Neurology service is available for consultation and to perform an MRI and CSF analysis to give you a diagnosis, an appropriate and definitive diagnosis of epilepsy. Did this post spark some interest in seizures, well keep posted as the next planned post (in the near future) will include seizure medications and possibly much to your surprise, there is more than phenobarbital and potassium bromide.
Posted on: Fri, 26 Sep 2014 05:08:04 +0000
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