Cavaliers Syringomyelia New Study

[shortstep]

I have no access to the full report.

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/21672954

Prevalence of asymptomatic syringomyelia in Cavalier King Charles spaniels.

Parker JE, Knowler SP, Rusbridge C, Noorman E, Jeffery ND.

SourceDepartment of Veterinary Medicine, Queen's Veterinary School Hospital, University of Cambridge, Madingley Road, Cambridge CB3 0ES.

Abstract

The prevalence of syringomyelia was investigated in a sample population of 555 Cavalier King Charles spaniels. All dogs, which were declared by their owners to be showing no clinical signs of syringomyelia, underwent MRI to determine the presence or absence of the condition. Data were analysed by logistic regression to determine the effects of sex and age on the prevalence of syringomyelia. Only increased age was found to have a significant effect.

The prevalence of syringomyelia was 25 per cent in dogs aged 12 months, increasing to a peak of 70 per cent in dogs aged 72 months or more.

PMID: 21672954 [PubMed - as supplied by publisher]

Edited June 24, 2011 by shortstep

[Sunnyflower]

Seeing the words "Cavalier + Syringomyelia" in the same sentence makes the blood rush out of my face!!

I appreciate studies need to be done and answers need to be found however as Georgina Child told us and our vet - "Being unlucky enough to get a dog with this disease in Australia is like being struck by lightening".

Thankfully this disease is not very common in Australia so I think a lot of this just alarms people more than it needs to. The reality is 95% of Cavaliers in Australia won't get this disease! Cavaliers aren't the only breed that can get this disease either, I believe also the Toy Poodle and the Yorkshire are just as susceptible.

[Keira&Phoenix]

It can also appear in a few Bull breeds.

I don't agree it is like getting struck by lightning. I don't know many people who have Cavs but out of those people 1 couple have lost a 15 month old to it and almost lost their 7 yo and another friends mum lost her Cav to it. I only know 2 other people with Cavs and they only got puppies recently. This seems like quite a high incidence rate to me, considering I only know 4 people with Cavs.

I think more people need to be aware of it so they do not have to go through what you or my friends have gone through.

[shortstep]

Thankfully this disease is not very common in Australia so I think a lot of this just alarms people more than it needs to. The reality is 95% of Cavaliers in Australia won't get this disease!

Can you show us the research for this information? I have never heard anything even like that stated about any population of Cavs and this disease. I remember one study done on OZ cavs, wasn't the affected rate 60% of something close to that? I'll have a look for tht study.

I think this is absolutly heart breaking news for this breed I hope the breeders all start screening for this and follow the breeding recomendations.

[shortstep]

Thankfully this disease is not very common in Australia so I think a lot of this just alarms people more than it needs to. The reality is 95% of Cavaliers in Australia won't get this disease!

Can you show us the research for this information? I have never heard anything even like that stated about any population of Cavs and this disease. I remember one study done on OZ cavs, wasn't the affected rate 60% of something close to that? I'll have a look for tht study.

Edited to add;

Here it is

http://www.cavalierhealth.org/syringomyelia.htm

MRI SCANS of AUSTRALIAN CKCS Breeding Stock shows 50% with SM.

Dr G. CHILDS ,Board Certified Veterinary Neurologist at the Small Animal Specialist Hospital ,in North Ryde , NSW ,Australia,spoke at the CKCS CLUB of NSW about Syringomyelia this Month ,and Reported that of 60 Cavaliers which have been MRI Scanned under the Breeding Protocol ,50% have been found to have Syrinxes on their MRI's

None of these Scanned Dogs had Any Symptoms of SM ,and All were Potential Breeding Stock.Their Syrinxes ranged from from 2mm to over 5mm in Size.

I think this is absolutly heart breaking news for this breed I hope the breeders all start screening for this and follow the breeding recomendations.

[Dju]

It can also appear in a few Bull breeds.

I don't agree it is like getting struck by lightning. I don't know many people who have Cavs but out of those people 1 couple have lost a 15 month old to it and almost lost their 7 yo and another friends mum lost her Cav to it. I only know 2 other people with Cavs and they only got puppies recently. This seems like quite a high incidence rate to me, considering I only know 4 people with Cavs.

I think more people need to be aware of it so they do not have to go through what you or my friends have gone through.

I find it frustrating for the breed that people are always on about how rare the disease is when chances are, they own or know of a Cav that had this disease.

I too only ever met two Cavs, with the owners having a Cav a few years ago that passed away from the disease. It's like insisting that brunette humans are rare despite the fact that you are one or at least know of someone who is. Is it always just a coincidence?

[cavvysavvy]

Wow, Scary..... As a cav owner, I am only aware of this disease via the pedigree dogs exposed documentary, and ever since watching it I have done some extensive research into the disease.

I agree that the prevalence is on the rise in Australia because of greater awareness of the disease. Pity it costs so much to have an MRI performed....

[Kirty]

It shouldn't be up to pet owners to get their dogs tested though. Breeders need to test their dogs PRIOR to having a litter. Sure an MRI is expensive, but I gather it is a one-off test for each dog and should be done just like heart screening and eye screening.

[Bilbo Baggins]

It shouldn't be up to pet owners to get their dogs tested though. Breeders need to test their dogs PRIOR to having a litter. Sure an MRI is expensive, but I gather it is a one-off test for each dog and should be done just like heart screening and eye screening.

No Kirty is not one off and 2 clear parent can give an affected pup. Hopefully DNA will help in eliminating the occurrence.

[sas]

I find it interesting that people say it's not common in Australia, is that because not many people have done the MRI to actually know because it's very expensive?

Without the MRI you can't say it's rare, it's like saying a dogs Hips & Elbows are perfect without having them scored.

[tdierikx]

The key word here is "asymptomatic" methinks... unless tested, you ain't going to know it's there until it's too late...

Without knowing the breeding background of the tested dogs in the study, it's a little hard to draw absolute conclusions as to the prevalence of this disease in the breed. How many of the dogs were sourced from ethical registered breeders who screen their breeding stock regularly, for example... ??

Add to the above the fact that research is usually undergone to prove or disprove a particular theory... well...

T.

[shortstep]

The key word here is "asymptomatic" methinks... unless tested, you ain't going to know it's there until it's too late...

Without knowing the breeding background of the tested dogs in the study, it's a little hard to draw absolute conclusions as to the prevalence of this disease in the breed. How many of the dogs were sourced from ethical registered breeders who screen their breeding stock regularly, for example... ??

Add to the above the fact that research is usually undergone to prove or disprove a particular theory... well...

T.

I can't read the study so cannot answer your question.

However as far as I know there are no breeders in Asutralia that are MRI screening all of their breeding dogs.

I think the Uk is further ahead with more breeders screening, but it is still optional I believe.

As long as Oz does their own study and scans several hundred dogs and gets totally different results which shows it is not a problem over here, that would be great! But until then, I think we can only go on the breed information that has already been obtained.

Even if they are off by half and the affected rate is 35% it is still way too high. This is not my breed, but it is my registry and we are now all held to account. Clearly this will come under review soon in OZ and with out any clear plans to address this problem I fear for the future of this breed and the impact it will have on all breeds and breeders in the ANKC.

Edited June 25, 2011 by shortstep

[Bilbo Baggins]

The key word here is "asymptomatic" methinks... unless tested, you ain't going to know it's there until it's too late...

Without knowing the breeding background of the tested dogs in the study, it's a little hard to draw absolute conclusions as to the prevalence of this disease in the breed. How many of the dogs were sourced from ethical registered breeders who screen their breeding stock regularly, for example... ??

Add to the above the fact that research is usually undergone to prove or disprove a particular theory... well...

T.

I can't read the study so cannot answer your question.

However as far as I know there are no breeders in Asutralia that are MRI screening all of their breeding dogs.

I think the Uk is further ahead with more breeders screening, but it is still optional I believe.

As long as Oz does their own study and scans several hundred dogs and gets totally different results which shows it is not a problem over here, that would be great! But until then, I think we can only go on the breed information that has already been obtained.

Even if they are off by half and the affected rate is 35% it is still way too high. This is not my breed, but it is my registry and we are now all held to account. Clearly this will come under review soon in OZ and with out any clear plans to address this problem I fear for the future of this breed and the impact it will have on all breeds and breeders in the ANKC.

shortstep there are quite a few breeders in NSW doing MRI's. Some Victorian's fly their dog to Sydney and pick up by a local taken in done and put back on a flight and that is cheaper than having it done in Vic. But some dogs have died under the anaesthetic so there are risks.

[shortstep]

shortstep there are quite a few breeders in NSW doing MRI's. Some Victorian's fly their dog to Sydney and pick up by a local taken in done and put back on a flight and that is cheaper than having it done in Vic. But some dogs have died under the anaesthetic so there are risks.

Can you tell us how many are MRI screening every dog they breed, both parents?

The ones I have found that have done some scans, have only done a dog here or there, they were not doing both parents of every breeding. With out doing both parents of every breeding, the breeders can not follow the recommended breeding directives, which have been shown to reduce the number of affected pups.

Also is there any movement towards making breeding directives with manditory MRI screeing on both parents of all litters?

BTW all breeders that have hips, elbows or shoulder scored all have to be put under to be tested. All breeders that do BEAR testing have to put their dogs under. All breeders who place pups on desexing agreements have these dogs put under to have the surgery. There are countless other examples. I do not think that this is a good excuse for not doing the testing. If the breed also has a real problem with tolerating anaesthesia, then that is another matter that needs to be looked at very closely as it could be realated to other health problems that need to brought to light.

[Sunnyflower]

As BB has already stated - You can have two MRI cleared parents only to have them produce a pup with the disease! There are no guarantee's unfortunately in this disease and from an owner of a Cavalier that I put to rest ONLY 2 weeks ago from this disease that was just shy of his third birthday I will not be writing this breed off my list of dogs I will own again in the future.

My wording from my earlier post is words spoken by Georgina Child & my vet whom relayed her words as we were all working together to treat my boy. Georgina is the one who does the discounted MRI's for the NSW Cavalier Club. In comparison to the UK this disease is no where near as common in Australia! I have the presentation that Georgina put together for the NSW Cavalier Club. She sent it to me not that long ago so it is all up to date!

Is it really Syringomyelia that is haunting the bull breeds as well? To my understanding and how it has been described by Georgina is that the main cause of the disease is that the size of the Cavaliers brain is that of a Golden Retriever yet their skull size is that of a toy breed. One of the medications my boy was put on to try and treat this was a diuretic to draw the fluid off the brain.

[stormie]

I wonder whether it's thought to be much more uncommon in Australia because owners here may be less likely to have the work up done to prove it?

I've been told by Vets who've worked in the UK, that dog ownership is different over there to here, in that pretty much everyone has insurance so there's really such thing as not affording treatment. So could it be possible that it's more common over there because it's diagnosed more than it is here? Could there be a lot more Cavs in Aus with SM, however owners are unable to afford the Specialist appointments and MRI to confirm?

We have a client with a Cav who displays the symptoms, particularly when excited, but the owner isn't that phased by it? They've had the disease explained to them but there's been no discussion of wanting to see a Specialist and/or have an MRI.

I guess I wonder how many people out there have dogs displaying symptoms but just think their dog is itchy and therefore not interested in seeking further vet attention? I assume the disease can vary in severity, so not all would be miserable 24/7?

[Bilbo Baggins]

It is definitely not as prevalent here as the UK.

[Bilbo Baggins]

shortstep there are quite a few breeders in NSW doing MRI's. Some Victorian's fly their dog to Sydney and pick up by a local taken in done and put back on a flight and that is cheaper than having it done in Vic. But some dogs have died under the anaesthetic so there are risks.

Can you tell us how many are MRI screening every dog they breed, both parents?

The ones I have found that have done some scans, have only done a dog here or there, they were not doing both parents of every breeding. With out doing both parents of every breeding, the breeders can not follow the recommended breeding directives, which have been shown to reduce the number of affected pups.

Also is there any movement towards making breeding directives with manditory MRI screeing on both parents of all litters?

BTW all breeders that have hips, elbows or shoulder scored all have to be put under to be tested. All breeders that do BEAR testing have to put their dogs under. All breeders who place pups on desexing agreements have these dogs put under to have the surgery. There are countless other examples. I do not think that this is a good excuse for not doing the testing. If the breed also has a real problem with tolerating anaesthesia, then that is another matter that needs to be looked at very closely as it could be realated to other health problems that need to brought to light.

I realize other tests require a GA. But because the MRI is very expensive $1200 to $1500 dollars, risk of death and not conclusive you have to weigh up the odds.

[zayda_asher]

Is it really Syringomyelia that is haunting the bull breeds as well?

I've never heard of SM in any of the Bull Breeds, so I'd be very interested in any info K&P has on this. There are a couple of different types of Ataxia in some of the Bull Breeds, I wonder if this is what they were thinking of?

[Steve]

The key word here is "asymptomatic" methinks... unless tested, you ain't going to know it's there until it's too late...

Without knowing the breeding background of the tested dogs in the study, it's a little hard to draw absolute conclusions as to the prevalence of this disease in the breed. How many of the dogs were sourced from ethical registered breeders who screen their breeding stock regularly, for example... ??

Add to the above the fact that research is usually undergone to prove or disprove a particular theory... well...

T.

I can't read the study so cannot answer your question.

However as far as I know there are no breeders in Asutralia that are MRI screening all of their breeding dogs.

I think the Uk is further ahead with more breeders screening, but it is still optional I believe.

As long as Oz does their own study and scans several hundred dogs and gets totally different results which shows it is not a problem over here, that would be great! But until then, I think we can only go on the breed information that has already been obtained.

Even if they are off by half and the affected rate is 35% it is still way too high. This is not my breed, but it is my registry and we are now all held to account. Clearly this will come under review soon in OZ and with out any clear plans to address this problem I fear for the future of this breed and the impact it will have on all breeds and breeders in the ANKC.

There are some breeders in Australia who are testing all of their breeding dogs