Page 11 - Clinical Connections - Spring 2024

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Page 11 - Clinical Connections - Spring 2024
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Research News






        COCKER SPANIEL DISORDER  DENTAL DISEASE IN                              EXTREME CONFORMATION
        PREDISPOSITIONS                     COMPANION RABBITS                   CRISIS OF SHAR PEI


        The English cocker spaniel (ECS) is one of   Previous small studies had suggested   Shar  Pei  were  once  bred  for  fighting  and
        the most popular dog breeds in the UK but   that lop-eared rabbits and those with   hunting  in  China,  where  the  name  means
        information  on  disorder  predisposition  and   brachycephalic skull conformations had   ‘sandpaper skin’. However, since the 1970s,
        protection is limited.              significantly elevated risk of dental disease.   more wrinkled and folded skin has become
          RVC VetCompass researchers sought   However, new VetCompass epidemiological   more popular with consumers who acquire
        to remedy this by reporting predispositions   research indicates that ear and skull shape   this breed.
        and protections for the ECS compared with   are not the major drivers for the high rates of   An  underlying  hereditary  disease
        all other dogs by analysing anonymised   dental disease in companion rabbits.   called hyaluronosis causes this extreme
        veterinary clinical data on dogs under   The study evaluated the frequency and   appearance and is linked to several other
        primary veterinary care.            conformational risk factors for primary-care   health problems, including in-turned eyelids
          Random samples of health records were   veterinary  diagnosis  of  dental  disease  in   (entropion) and ear disease.
        reviewed  for  2,510  from  10,313  (24.3%)   rabbits.  Anonymised VetCompass clinical
        ECS and 7,813 from 326,552 (2.39%) non-  records were manually reviewed to identify
        ECS dogs.  The most common disorders   dental disease cases in companion rabbits
        diagnosed during 2016 were extracted   registered  with  UK  practices.  Risk  factor
        and compared using multivariable logistic   analysis  used  multivariable  binary  logistic
        regression.                         regression modelling.
                                              Based on 161,979 rabbits under primary
                                            veterinary  care in  2019,  the one-year
                                            prevalence of overall dental disease was
                                            15.36%. The prevalence of dental disease
                                            affecting incisors was 3.14%, and for cheek
                                            teeth was 13.72%.
                                                                                 Analysis  of anonymised  clinical records
                                                                                collected by VetCompass revealed that Shar
                                                                                Pei made up 0.4% of all dogs in the UK in
                                                                                2013. The most common specific disorders
                                                                                diagnosed  were  entropion  (17.88%),  ear
          After accounting for confounding by age,                              infection  (16.36%),  ear  problems  (6.69%),
        sex, bodyweight within breed-sex, insurance                             aggression  (5.23%),  and  skin  infection
        status and veterinary practice, the ECS had                             (4.29%).
        a  higher  probability  (of  48.84%  conditions                          Among the 30 most common disorders,
        and  lower  risk  of  25.58%  conditions                                females were more likely to show in-turned
        compared to all other dogs. Disorders with                              eyelids and conjunctivitis, while males were
        the highest risk in English cocker spaniels   Neither  lop-eared  conformation  nor   more likely to show aggression and infected
        included ear discharge (14.66 times risk),   brachycephalic skull conformation was   paws. The  most  common  disorder  groups
        keratoconjunctivitis sicca (7.64 times risk),   significantly  associated  with  increased   were eye disorders (22.27%), skin (21.01%),
        and musculoskeletal pain (7.06 times risk).   risk of dental disease.  The study found   ear (18.66%), traumatic injury (7.53%), and
          Disorders with the lowest risk included   that dental disease risk increased as age   behavioural (7.21%).
        alopecia,  atopic dermatitis  and allergy  in   increased and decreased as bodyweight   The average Shar Pei lifespan was found
        general.                            increased.                          to be just 7.28 years, substantially below the
          These  findings  can  aid  dog  owners,   The high overall prevalence of dental   average 11.2 years for dogs overall.  The
        breeders, and veterinarians to better   disease,  regardless  of  conformation,  most common causes of death were cancer
        monitor health in ECS, and promote earlier   represents a major welfare concern for all   (15.44%),  kidney  disorders  (13.24%)  and
        diagnosis with improved prognosis.  companion rabbits. The authors concluded   behavioural disorders (11.03%).
                                            that the biggest risk factor for dental disease
                                            in  rabbits  kept  as  pets  may  be  how  their
                                            conformation and husbandry differs widely
                                            to rabbits that live in the wild.

            Research paper: Engdahl, K.S., Brodbelt, D.C.,   Research paper: Jackson, M.A., Burn, C.C.,   Research paper: O'Neill, D.G., Engdahl, K.S.,
            Cameron, C., Church, D.B. and O'Neill, D.G.   Hedley, J., Brodbelt, D.C. and O'Neill, D.G.   Leach, A., Packer, R.M.A., Church, D.B. and
        (2024) 'English Cocker Spaniels under primary   (2024) 'Dental disease in companion rabbits under UK   Brodbelt, D.C. (2023) 'Is it now time to iron out the
        veterinary care in the UK: disorder predispositions and   primary veterinary care: Frequency and risk factors',   wrinkles? Health of Shar Pei dogs under primary
        protections', Canine Medicine and Genetics  Veterinary Record           veterinary care in the UK', Canine Medicine and
                                                                                Genetics


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