Dogs with epilepsy are among the commonest neurological patients in veterinary practice and therefore have historically attracted much attention with regard to definitions, clinical approach and management. A number of classification proposals for canine epilepsy have been published during the years reflecting always in parts the current proposals coming from the human epilepsy organisation the International League Against Epilepsy (ILAE). It has however not been possible to gain agreed consensus, “a common language”, for the classification and terminology used between veterinary and human neurologists and neuroscientists, practitioners, neuropharmacologists and neuropathologists. This has led to an unfortunate situation where different veterinary publications and textbook chapters on epilepsy merely reflect individual author preferences with respect to terminology, which can be confusing to the readers and influence the definition and diagnosis of epilepsy in first line practice and research studies.In this document the International Veterinary Epilepsy Task Force (IVETF) discusses current understanding of canine epilepsy and presents our 2015 proposal for terminology and classification of epilepsy and epileptic seizures. We propose a classification system which reflects new thoughts from the human ILAE but also roots in former well accepted terminology. We think that this classification system can be used by all stakeholders.

The objective of the present study were (1) to ascertain the lifetime risk of a depression in a representative group of multiple sclerosis (MS) patients, (2) to assess the morbidity risks for depression among first-degree relatives of these MS patients, and (3) to compare these familial risks for first-degree relatives of MS patients with those for first-degree relatives of a primary depression population, i.e., depression but no MS. We psychiatrically evaluated 221 MS patients (index cases) using a structured clinical interview for the DSM-III-R and calculated the rate and lifetime risk of depression for these index cases using the product limit estimate of survival function. We obtained psychiatric histories for all first-degree relatives of index cases, and we calculated morbidity risks for depression for these relatives using the maximum likelihood approach and compared the risks using the likelihood ratio tests. Index cases had a 50.3% lifetime risk of depression. Morbidity risks for depression among first-degree relatives of index cases were decidedly lower when compared with morbidity risks among first-degree relatives of the reference population. Although there appears to be a very high rate of depression among MS patients, the data for their first-degree relatives do not support a clear genetic basis for this depression, or at least the same genetic basis that probably operates within families when depression occurs in the absence of MS.

In Europe, the number of antiepileptic drugs (AEDs) licensed for dogs has grown considerably over the last years. Nevertheless, the same questions remain, which include, 1) when to start treatment, 2) which drug is best used initially, 3) which adjunctive AED can be advised if treatment with the initial drug is unsatisfactory, and 4) when treatment changes should be considered. In this consensus proposal, an overview is given on the aim of AED treatment, when to start long-term treatment in canine epilepsy and which veterinary AEDs are currently in use for dogs. The consensus proposal for drug treatment protocols, 1) is based on current published evidence-based literature, 2) considers the current legal framework of the cascade regulation for the prescription of veterinary drugs in Europe, and 3) reflects the authors’ experience. With this paper it is aimed to provide a consensus for the management of canine idiopathic epilepsy. Furthermore, for the management of structural epilepsy AEDs are inevitable in addition to treating the underlying cause, if possible.

Common criteria for the diagnosis of drug resistance and the assessment of outcome are needed urgently as a prerequisite for standardized evaluation and reporting of individual therapeutic responses in canine epilepsy. Thus, we provide a proposal for the definition of drug resistance and partial therapeutic success in canine patients with epilepsy. This consensus statement also suggests a list of factors and aspects of outcome, which should be considered in addition to the impact on seizures. Moreover, these expert recommendations discuss criteria which determine the validity and informative value of a therapeutic trial in an individual patient and also suggest the application of individual outcome criteria. Agreement on common guidelines does not only render a basis for future optimization of individual patient management, but is also a presupposition for the design and implementation of clinical studies with highly standardized inclusion and exclusion criteria. Respective standardization will improve the comparability of findings from different studies and renders an improved basis for multicenter studies. Therefore, this proposal provides an in-depth discussion of the implications of outcome criteria for clinical studies. In particular ethical aspects and the different options for study design and application of individual patient-centered outcome criteria are considered.

BackgroundAdvances in mobile technology mean vets are now commonly presented with videos of paroxysmal events by clients, but the consistency of the interpretation of these videos has not been investigated. The objective of this study was to investigate the level of agreement between vets (both neurology specialists and non-specialists) on the description and classification of videos depicting paroxysmal events, without knowing any results of diagnostic workup. An online questionnaire study was conducted, where participants watched 100 videos of dogs and cats exhibiting paroxysmal events and answered questions regarding: epileptic seizure presence (yes/no), seizure type, consciousness status, and the presence of motor, autonomic and neurobehavioural signs. Agreement statistics (percentage agreement and kappa) calculated for each variable, with prevalence indices calculated to aid their interpretation.ResultsOnly a fair level of agreement (κ = 0.40) was found for epileptic seizure presence. Overall agreement of seizure type was moderate (κ = 0.44), with primary generalised seizures showing the highest level of agreement (κ = 0.60), and focal the lowest (κ =0.31). Fair agreement was found for consciousness status and the presence of autonomic signs (κ = 0.21–0.40), but poor agreement for neurobehavioral signs (κ = 0.16). Agreement for motor signs ranged from poor (κ = ≤ 0.20) to moderate (κ = 0.41–0.60). Differences between specialists and non-specialists were identified.ConclusionsThe relatively low levels of agreement described here highlight the need for further discussions between neurology experts regarding classifying and describing epileptic seizures, and additional training of non-specialists to facilitate accurate diagnosis. There is a need for diagnostic tools (e.g. electroencephalogram) able to differentiate between epileptic and non-epileptic paroxysms.Electronic supplementary materialThe online version of this article (doi:10.1186/s12917-015-0356-2) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

Traditionally, histological investigations of the epileptic brain are required to identify epileptogenic brain lesions, to evaluate the impact of seizure activity, to search for mechanisms of drug-resistance and to look for comorbidities. For many instances, however, neuropathological studies fail to add substantial data on patients with complete clinical work-up. This may be due to sparse training in epilepsy pathology and or due to lack of neuropathological guidelines for companion animals.The protocols introduced herein shall facilitate systematic sampling and processing of epileptic brains and therefore increase the efficacy, reliability and reproducibility of morphological studies in animals suffering from seizures.Brain dissection protocols of two neuropathological centres with research focus in epilepsy have been optimised with regards to their diagnostic yield and accuracy, their practicability and their feasibility concerning clinical research requirements.The recommended guidelines allow for easy, standardised and ubiquitous collection of brain regions, relevant for seizure generation. Tissues harvested the prescribed way will increase the diagnostic efficacy and provide reliable material for scientific investigations.Electronic supplementary materialThe online version of this article (doi:10.1186/s12917-015-0467-9) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

Background: Poor medication compliance by human epilepsy patients is one of the leading causes of treatment failure and increased seizure frequency. The aim of this cross-sectional study was to analyse owner compliance in pharmacological treatment of canine idiopathic epilepsy and to identify factors associated with poor compliance. Methods: The number of antiseizure drug tablets was recorded to determine if the patient received sufficient tablets to cover the time period between prescriptions and to assess compliant prescription cycles. Additionally, compliance was assessed by an online survey of owners. Results: For the prescription monitoring data from 94 cases from three small animal practices in the United Kingdom revealed an overall median compliance of 56%. Thirty-three per cent of owners were ≥80% compliant, while 21% were 100% compliant. During a non-compliant prescription cycle, a patient missed a median of 6 days (0.11-519 days) of treatment. Patients on polytherapy had higher compliance rates than on monotherapy (p = 0.031). The survey (229 respondents from online canine epilepsy groups) showed that low daily dosing was associated with better compliance (p = 0.049). Conclusion: Owner compliance was subpar in this study and could represent a significant issue in epilepsy management, which needs to be considered by veterinary surgeons when treating canine epilepsy.

THE tropical rat mite, Ornithonyssus bacoti, is a blood-feeding ectoparasite. It is found on a variety of domesticated and wild mammal and bird species worldwide. In temperate countries, populations evidently originated from ports, where it is believed mites came ashore on ship rats (Evans and Till 1966). The few previously published records for the UK (the first being by Evans and Browning [1955]) and data from specimens deposited in the Natural History Museum, London, suggest that 0 bacoti was introduced into the UK relatively recently. The earliest example in the Natural History Museum collection was found in 1933, with the vast majority of specimens originating from ship rats or buildings near ports, and the remainder originating from house mice in similar situations, a Chinese hamster housed in a zoo and a lesser white-toothed shrew caught in the Scilly Isles. Reports from outside the UK have shown that 0 bacoti may be found on the rat, mouse, hamster, cat and chicken, suggesting that companion animals, laboratory animals, and poultry are all prone to infestation (Baker 1999). 0 bacoti has been associated with pruritus in human beings (Mumcuoglu and Buchheim 1983) and will readily bite people in the absence of its normal rodent hosts. However, despite reports of human infestation in several cities in the UK, normally in commercial or museum buildings (Evans and Browning 1955), there appears to be no detailed information on attacks in this country, probably because symptoms have not been reported or attributed to 0 bacoti. The mite also acts as the intermediate host for Litomosoides carinii, a filarial nematode of rodents and has been shown to FIG 2: (a) Posterior part of dorsal shield of Ornithonyssus bacoti. (b) Posterior part of dorsal shield of Ornithonyssus sylviarum showing the sudden narrowing (arrow). (c) Ventral sternal shield (ss) of 0 bacoti showing a member of the posterior setal pair (arrow). Bars=50 ,um FIG 1: Adult female Ornithonyssus bacoti. Bar=200 pim serve as an experimental vector for murine typhus, Q fever,plague, Chagas' disease and coxsackie virus; however, it appears to be of minor importance as the natural vector for these diseases (Baker 1999). This short communication describes the first record of 0 bacoti infesting a pet hamster (Mesocricetus auratus) in the UK.A pet hamster was boarded at a local pet shop while its owners spent a week camping on the Brest peninsula in France. The family travelled to St Malo from Portsmouth by ferry on August 3, 2002, and returned to their home in Hertfordshire eight days later, leaving their car in the port car park before each ferry crossing. The hamster was collected from the pet shop on August 13, and appeared to be in good health. The owners reported'bites' on two family members on September 1, which warranted medical treatment two days later. However, these may have been associated with a concurrent flea infestation in the house rather than the result of attack by 0 bacoti. At approximately the same time mites were noticed on the hamster, w...