PASTORI BELGI CLUB ITALIA
Epilepsy
traduzione gentilmente concessa da Giuliana Mafrica
"An epileptic seizure is similar to an electric storm, whose discharges occur in the brain."
Epilepsy is a disease which, unfortunately, cannot be diagnosed with specific tests, but which must be identified by ruling out other pathologies, evaluating the symptoms and carrying out clinical examinations.
Seizures can be either the result of a specific brain lesion, like a tumour or stroke, or can occur without an apparent cause - a condition known as idiopathic epilepsy.
Some cases of idiopathic epilepsy can possibly result from hereditary genetic transmission; therefore, the subjects concerned should be mapped and excluded from reproduction.
Until a few years ago, these problems were mainly observed in long-haired Belgian Shepherd; today we know that Malinois and Laekenois are also affected by this disease, even though the reported cases never concern Italian subjects.
Seizures are the external sign of an abnormal activity of the brain's grey matter; they usually last about 30 seconds. They can be particularly violent and involve all the muscles with severe spasms, stool and urine expulsion, anal gland emptying and loss of consciousness, or they can be much milder and only involve some muscle bundles, without making the dog lose his consciousness and sense of reality. The latter are much more difficult to identify. In both cases, they definitely leave the dog in a confused state, without the possibility to manage involuntary actions.
Real seizures can be preceded by an 'aura', a condition that only lasts a few seconds, in which the dog seems to perceive the upcoming fit, showing anxiety and worry, trying to escape and seeking out his owner.
Idiopathic epilepsy is mainly observed in dogs from 2 to 5 years of age. The exact cause is unknown; therefore, the treatment only aims at controlling seizures, without curing the neurological discharges. When the disease is diagnosed in time, following the whole procedure in order to identify it and keep it under control, we can give our dogs a better quality of life; however, this depends on the form of epilepsy and seizure intensity, since some subjects may not tolerate medications affecting kidneys, or may even experience a cardiac arrest.
No databases concerning epilepsy in Belgian Shepherd exist in Italy; however, "The International Epilepsy Register", which includes nearly 400 affected dogs, is available and continuously updated; we hope that Italian dog owners and breeders will join it as well.
Our major scientific representative specialized in Neurology is Prof. Gualtiero Gandini, who practises at the University of Bologna.
