A Subset of Dogs with Presumptive Idiopathic Epilepsy Show Hippocampal Asymmetry: A Volumetric Comparison with Non-Epileptic Dogs Using MRI

Chelsie M. Estey, Curtis W. Dewey, Mark Rishniw, David M. Lin, Jennifer Bouma, Joseph Sackman, Erica Burkland

MRI-acquired volumetric measurements from 100 dogs with presumptive idiopathic epilepsy (IE) and 41 non-epileptic (non-IE) dogs were used to determine if hippocampal asymmetry exists in the IE as compared to the non-IE dogs. MRI databases from three institutions were searched for dogs that underwent MRI of the brain and were determined to have IE and those that were considered non-IE dogs. Volumes of the right and left hippocampi were measured using Mimics(®) software. Median hippocampal volumes of IE and non-IE dogs were 0.47 and 0.53 cm(3), respectively. There was no significant difference in overall hippocampal volume between IE and non-IE dogs; however, IE dogs had greater hippocampal asymmetry than non-IE dogs (P < 0.012). A threshold value of 1.16 from the hippocampal ratio had an 85% specificity for identifying IE-associated asymmetry. Thirty five percent of IE dogs had a hippocampal ratio >1.16. Asymmetry was not associated with any particular hemisphere (P = 0.67). Our study indicates that hippocampal asymmetry occurs in a subset of dogs with presumptive idiopathic/genetic epilepsy, suggesting a structural etiology to some cases of IE.