Abstract
Background: Although a common neurological disorder in dogs, long-term outcome of epilepsy is sparsely documented. Objectives: To investigate risk factors for survival and duration of survival in a population of dogs with idiopathic epilepsy or epilepsy associated with a known intracranial cause. Animals: One hundred and two client owned dogs; 78 dogs with idiopathic epilepsy and 24 dogs with epilepsy associated with a known intracranial cause. Methods: A retrospective hospital based study with follow-up. Dogs diagnosed with epilepsy between 2002 and 2008 were enrolled in the study. Owners were interviewed by telephone using a structured questionnaire addressing epilepsy status, treatment, death/alive, and cause of death. Results: Median life span was 7.6 years, 9.2 years, and 5.8 years for all dogs, and dogs with idiopathic epilepsy or dogs with epilepsy associated with a known intracranial cause (P <.001), respectively. Survival time for dogs with idiopathic epilepsy was significantly (P =.0030) decreased for dogs euthanized because of epilepsy (median: 35 months) compared to dogs euthanized for other reasons (median: 67.5 months). Neutered male dogs with idiopathic epilepsy had a significant (P =.031) shorter survival (median: 38.5 months) after index seizure compared to intact male dogs (median: 71 months). Treatment with two antiepileptic drugs (AED′s) did not negatively influence survival (P =.056). Conclusion and Clinical Importance: Dogs with idiopathic epilepsy can in many cases expect a life span close to what is reported for dogs in general. In dogs where mono-therapy is not sufficient, the need for treatment with two AED′s is not linked to a poor prognosis.
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Journal | Journal of Veterinary Internal Medicine |
| Volume | 28 |
| Issue number | 6 |
| Pages (from-to) | 1782-1788 |
| Number of pages | 7 |
| ISSN | 0891-6640 |
| DOIs | |
| Publication status | Published - 1 Nov 2014 |