Characterization of neurological diseases in canines: University of San Carlos of Guatemala, year 2017

Objetive. To determine the casuistry of neurological diseases, as well as the age, race and affected neuroanatomical sites. Materials and methods. A retrospective study of the clinical records of canine patients attended was carried out at the Veterinary Hospital of the Faculty of Veterinary Medicine and Zootechnics of the University Universidad de San Carlos de Guatemala in 2017. The data were classified according to the VitaminD mnemonic rule. The variables sex, race, age, and neuroanatomical localization of lesions were included. The data were summarized using descriptive statistics through frequency distribution tables. Results. From 1127 case records, the prevalence of neurological diseases was 8.43%. The frequency was higher in males than in females (53.68% vs 46.32%). The most affected age group ranges from zero to seven years. Regarding breeds, a higher frequency was observed in canines without defined breed (25.53%) followed by French Poodle dogs (20.21%). The pathologies found were vascular (1.05%), inflammatory/infectious (25.26%), traumatic (13.68%), metabolic (8.42%), idiopathic (6.32%), neoplastic (1.05%) and degenerative (44.21%). The most common neurolocalization was at the CNS level (86.32%). Conclusions. According to the findings of this study, it was determined that degenerative diseases represented most of the neurological casuistry. The highest frequency of cases occurred in young canine patients, males of mixed breeds. The most frequent neuroanatomical site of lesions was in the spinal cord at the thoracolumbar level.