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A review of treatment options for behavioural manifestations of clinical anxiety as a comorbidity in dogs with idiopathic epilepsy (2018)
Journal Article
Watson, F., Rusbridge, C., Packer, R. M. A., Casey, R. A., Heath, S., & Volk, H. A. (2018). A review of treatment options for behavioural manifestations of clinical anxiety as a comorbidity in dogs with idiopathic epilepsy. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tvjl.2018.06.001

Psychiatric comorbidities affect a large percentage of people with epilepsy and have a detrimental impact on their quality of life. Recently, behavioural comorbidities, with similar characteristics to human psychiatric diseases, have been identified... Read More about A review of treatment options for behavioural manifestations of clinical anxiety as a comorbidity in dogs with idiopathic epilepsy.

Preliminary assessment of cognitive impairments in canine idiopathic epilepsy (2018)
Journal Article
Winter, J., Packer, R. M. A., & Volk, H. A. (2018). Preliminary assessment of cognitive impairments in canine idiopathic epilepsy. Veterinary Record, https://doi.org/10.1136/vr.104603

In humans, epilepsy can induce or accelerate cognitive impairment (CI). There is emerging evidence of CI in dogs with idiopathic epilepsy (IE) from recent epidemiological studies. The aim of our study was to assess CI in dogs with IE using two tests... Read More about Preliminary assessment of cognitive impairments in canine idiopathic epilepsy.

Cognitive dysfunction in naturally occurring canine idiopathic epilepsy (2018)
Journal Article
Packer, R. M. A., McGreevy, P. D., Salvin, H. E., Valenzuela, M. J., Chaplin, C. M., & Volk, H. A. (2018). Cognitive dysfunction in naturally occurring canine idiopathic epilepsy. PLoS ONE, 13(2), e0192182. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0192182

Globally, epilepsy is a common serious brain disorder. In addition to seizure activity, epilepsy is associated with cognitive impairments including static cognitive impairments present at onset, progressive seizure-induced impairments and co-morbid d... Read More about Cognitive dysfunction in naturally occurring canine idiopathic epilepsy.

Negative effects of epilepsy and antiepileptic drugs on the trainability of dogs with naturally occurring idiopathic epilepsy (2018)
Journal Article
Packer, R. M. A., McGreevy, P. D., Pergande, A., & Volk, H. A. (2018). Negative effects of epilepsy and antiepileptic drugs on the trainability of dogs with naturally occurring idiopathic epilepsy. Applied Animal Behaviour Science, 200, 106-113. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.applanim.2017.11.008

Epilepsy and anti-epileptic drug (AED) treatment have been found to induce or exacerbate underlying cognitive impairments in people, affecting learning ability, attention and memory. Idiopathic epilepsy (IE) is the most common chronic neurological co... Read More about Negative effects of epilepsy and antiepileptic drugs on the trainability of dogs with naturally occurring idiopathic epilepsy.

Physiological reactivity to spontaneously occurring seizure activity in dogs with epilepsy and their carers (2017)
Journal Article
Packer, R. M. A., Volk, H. A., & Fowkes, R. C. (2017). Physiological reactivity to spontaneously occurring seizure activity in dogs with epilepsy and their carers. Physiology and Behavior, 177, 27-33. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.physbeh.2017.04.008

There is a complex bidirectional relationship between stress and epilepsy. Stressful stimuli and subsequent cortisol release act as a trigger for seizure activity in some individuals with epilepsy, and seizure activity itself may act as a stressor to... Read More about Physiological reactivity to spontaneously occurring seizure activity in dogs with epilepsy and their carers.

Clinical reasoning in feline epilepsy: Which combination of clinical information is useful? (2017)
Journal Article
Stanciu, G. D., Packer, R. M. A., Pakozdy, A., Solcan, G., & Volk, H. A. (2017). Clinical reasoning in feline epilepsy: Which combination of clinical information is useful?. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tvjl.2017.04.001

We sought to identify the association between clinical risk factors and the diagnosis of idiopathic epilepsy (IE) or structural epilepsy (SE) in cats, using statistical models to identify combinations of discrete parameters from the patient signalmen... Read More about Clinical reasoning in feline epilepsy: Which combination of clinical information is useful?.

Evaluation of magnetic resonance imaging guidelines for differentiation between thoracolumbar intervertebral disk extrusions and intervertebral disk protrusions in dogs (2016)
Journal Article
De Decker, S., Gomes, S. A., Packer, R. M. A., Kenny, P. J., Beltran, E., Parzefall, B., …Volk, H. A. (2016). Evaluation of magnetic resonance imaging guidelines for differentiation between thoracolumbar intervertebral disk extrusions and intervertebral disk protrusions in dogs. https://doi.org/10.1111/vru.12394

Four MRI variables have recently been suggested to be independently associated with a diagnosis of thoracolumbar intervertebral disk extrusion or protrusion. Midline intervertebral disk herniation, and partial intervertebral disk degeneration were as... Read More about Evaluation of magnetic resonance imaging guidelines for differentiation between thoracolumbar intervertebral disk extrusions and intervertebral disk protrusions in dogs.

Risk factors for cluster seizures in canine idiopathic epilepsy (2016)
Journal Article
Packer, R. M. A., Shihab, N. K., Torres, B. B. J., & Volk, H. A. (2016). Risk factors for cluster seizures in canine idiopathic epilepsy. Research in Veterinary Science, 105, 136-138. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.rvsc.2016.02.005

Cluster seizures (CS), two or more seizures within a 24-hour period, are reported in 38–77% of dogs with idiopathic epilepsy (IE). Negative outcomes associated with CS include a reduced likelihood of achieving seizure freedom, decreased survival time... Read More about Risk factors for cluster seizures in canine idiopathic epilepsy.

In the Eye of the Beholder: Owner Preferences for Variations in Cats’ Appearances with Specific Focus on Skull Morphology
Journal Article
Farnworth, M. J., Packer, R. M. A., Sordo, L., Chen, R., Caney, S. M. A., & Gunn-Moore, D. A. (in press). In the Eye of the Beholder: Owner Preferences for Variations in Cats’ Appearances with Specific Focus on Skull Morphology. Animals, 8(2), 30. https://doi.org/10.3390/ani8020030

Changes in the popularity of cat breeds are largely driven by human perceptions of, and selection for, phenotypic traits including skull morphology. The popularity of breeds with altered skull shapes appears to be increasing, and owner preferences ar... Read More about In the Eye of the Beholder: Owner Preferences for Variations in Cats’ Appearances with Specific Focus on Skull Morphology.

Epilepsy beyond seizures: a review of the impact of epilepsy and its comorbidities on health-related quality of life in dogs
Journal Article
Packer, R. M. A., & Volk, H. A. (in press). Epilepsy beyond seizures: a review of the impact of epilepsy and its comorbidities on health-related quality of life in dogs. Veterinary Record, 177(12), 306-315. https://doi.org/10.1136/vr.103360

Epilepsy is one of the most common chronic neurological conditions in the dog, estimated to affect 0.6 to 0.75 per cent of dogs. Owners of dogs with epilepsy have previously indicated that their dog's quality of life (QoL) is of greatest importance t... Read More about Epilepsy beyond seizures: a review of the impact of epilepsy and its comorbidities on health-related quality of life in dogs.

International Veterinary Epilepsy Task Force Consensus Proposal: Diagnostic approach to epilepsy in dogs
Journal Article
De Risio, L., Bhatti, S. F. A., Munana, K., Penderis, J., Stein, V., Tipold, A., …Volk, H. A. (in press). International Veterinary Epilepsy Task Force Consensus Proposal: Diagnostic approach to epilepsy in dogs. BMC Veterinary Research, 11(148), https://doi.org/10.1186/s12917-015-0462-1

This article outlines the consensus proposal on diagnosis of epilepsy in dogs by the International Veterinary Epilepsy Task Force. The aim of this consensus proposal is to improve consistency in the diagnosis of epilepsy in the clinical and research... Read More about International Veterinary Epilepsy Task Force Consensus Proposal: Diagnostic approach to epilepsy in dogs.

International Veterinary Epilepsy Task Force's current understanding of idiopathic epilepsy of genetic or suspected genetic origin in purebred dogs
Journal Article
Hüelsmeyer, V., Fischer, A., Mandigers, P. J. J., De Risio, L., Berendt, M., Rusbridge, C., …Volk, H. A. (in press). International Veterinary Epilepsy Task Force's current understanding of idiopathic epilepsy of genetic or suspected genetic origin in purebred dogs. BMC Veterinary Research, 11, https://doi.org/10.1186/s12917-015-0463-0

Canine idiopathic epilepsy is a common neurological disease affecting both purebred and crossbred dogs. Various breed-specific cohort, epidemiological and genetic studies have been conducted to date, which all improved our knowledge and general under... Read More about International Veterinary Epilepsy Task Force's current understanding of idiopathic epilepsy of genetic or suspected genetic origin in purebred dogs.