Exercise-induced hyperthermia syndrome (canine stress syndrome) in four related male English springer spaniels

Abstract

ObjectiveThis retrospective study describes the signalment, clinical presentation, diagnostic findings, and mode of inheritance in four young male English springer spaniel dogs with presumptive canine stress syndrome.Materials and methodsAppropriate cases were located through medical searches of medical records of two large private referral centers. Inclusion criteria comprised of English springer spaniel dogs with tachypnea and hyperthermia that subsequently developed weakness or collapse, with or without signs of hemorrhage, soon after a period of mild-to-moderate exercise. The pedigrees of the four affected dogs, as well as eleven related English springer spaniels, were then analyzed to determine a presumptive mode of genetic inheritance.ResultsFour dogs met the inclusion criteria. All four were male, suggesting the possibility of a recessive sex-linked heritable disorder. Pedigree analysis suggests that more dogs may be potentially affected, although these dogs may have never had the concurrent triggering drug/activity/event to precipitate the clinical syndrome. There was complete resolution of clinical signs in three of the four dogs with aggressive symptomatic and supportive therapy, with one dog dying during treatment.ConclusionDogs with canine stress syndrome have the potential for rapid recovery if treated aggressively and the complications of the disease (eg, coagulopathy) are anticipated. All four dogs were male, suggesting the possibility of a recessive sex-linked mode of inheritance. Further genetic analyses should be strongly considered by those involved with the English springer spaniel breed, either with a genome-wide association study using canine single-nucleotide polymorphism arrays or whole-genome sequencing of affected and closely related dogs.

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“…An autosomal dominant T1640C mutation of the ryanodine receptor has been shown to cause malignant hyperthermia in a mixed breed colony of dogs 10 . Additionally a condition similar to the traditional malignant hyperthermia called canine stress syndrome has been described in Greyhounds and English Springer Spaniels 11 …”

“…10 Additionally a condition similar to the traditional malignant hyperthermia called canine stress syndrome has been described in Greyhounds and English Springer Spaniels. 11 In 1978, the production of beer at home was legalized on a federal level in the United States, but it took until 2013 for all 50 US states to remove legal restrictions on home brewing. 12 There has been a recent surge in the popularity of homebrewing and in 2017 the Home Brewers Association reported an estimated 1.1 million homebrewers in the United States alone.…”