Alaskan Husky Encephalopathy

Two 6-month-old Alaskan Huskies presented with circling, head pressing, seizures and blindness. A neurologic exam confirmed a forebrain and cerebellum localisation.
 

Infectious disease and metabolic screening was normal for both as was CSF for one of them.

As you can see, the MRI revealed multifocal, bilaterally symmetric T2 hyperintensities of subcortical white matter, deep nuclei, brainstem, and cerebellum with cortical atrophy. Pathology confirmed that the lesions seen were compatible with the subacute necrotizing encephalopathy described in this breed which is similar to Leigh's syndrome in humans, related to a defect in the thiamine transporter gene.

To read more about this condition, click on the link below.

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