One of my doggy daycare parents told me a story of how she had lost a fur baby due to GME so in honor of her fur baby and because I had never heard of GME myself I thought it would be a good idea to write a post about GME so other people know about it too.
Granulomatous Meningoencephalitis or GME is an inflammatory disease of the central nervous system. It is the second most common cause of inflammatory disease of the canine central nervous system though while researching online I couldn't find the percentage of dogs who suffer from the disease. GME is more common in small breed female dogs, especially poodles and terriers, of young and middle age and has a rapid onset.
Lesions characteristic of GME are found mainly in the white matter of the cerebrum, brainstem, cerebellum and spinal cord. Since lesions resemble those similar to allergic meningoencephalitis it is believed GME is caused by an immune response and not infectious, though the response may be triggered by an infectious agent.
Symptoms vary depending on how widespread the disease is and can include fever, neck pain, incoordination, head tilt, involuntary movement of the eyes, pacing, circling, depression, seizures, and sudden blindness. A CT scan or MRI will show lesions and the usual treatment is a combination of immunosuppressive drugs and a
corticosteroid or radiation therapy for localized GME, but there is no cure at this time.
Granulomatous Meningoencephalitis or GME is an inflammatory disease of the central nervous system. It is the second most common cause of inflammatory disease of the canine central nervous system though while researching online I couldn't find the percentage of dogs who suffer from the disease. GME is more common in small breed female dogs, especially poodles and terriers, of young and middle age and has a rapid onset.
Lesions characteristic of GME are found mainly in the white matter of the cerebrum, brainstem, cerebellum and spinal cord. Since lesions resemble those similar to allergic meningoencephalitis it is believed GME is caused by an immune response and not infectious, though the response may be triggered by an infectious agent.
Symptoms vary depending on how widespread the disease is and can include fever, neck pain, incoordination, head tilt, involuntary movement of the eyes, pacing, circling, depression, seizures, and sudden blindness. A CT scan or MRI will show lesions and the usual treatment is a combination of immunosuppressive drugs and a
corticosteroid or radiation therapy for localized GME, but there is no cure at this time.