GME - Granulometous Meningioencephalomyelitis My speciality vet thinks my 1.5 year Yorkie has Granulometous Meningioencephalomyelitis (GME). It is a fatal disease. Has anyone had any experience with this issue. We are doing a bunch of tests today to get the correct diagnosis. :( |
OMG I can't even SAY that word but I'm VERY VERY SORRY to hear this for you...Is there a chance it is NOT that ? If the tests come back positive is this the kind of thing that can be mis-diagnosed ? Can you try for a 2nd opinion ? It sounds like what a good friends yorkie has ....and it's very sad to see......You must be devestated and my heart goes out to you - Please let us know how things go - again - I'm very sorry ! |
ohh, i am soo sorry!! That is horrible, i hope that your vet is wrong and the test comes back negative. . . . |
Oh I hope the tests come back negative. I have never heard of this before. What is it? |
what is it? |
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It's a brain disorder, here's some info: --- Granulometous meningioencephalomyelitis Comments: I am looking for information on Granulomatous meningo encephalitis. Our ****z tsu Ollie is suffering from the above. He has had it now for almost a week, it came on very suddenly after being very active and fit, it came on within hours. He is now at a vetenary surgery paralysed and showing all the signs of meningitis, the vet is excellent and we have no complaints, but wish we could understand this illness more and what are the success rate for a recovery and how long does it normally take before the dog is up on his feet again Answer: John- Granulometous meningoencephalomyelitis (GME) comes in three forms: localized, generalized and ocular. Localized GME refers to the fact that a discrete area of the brain is affected. It can cause problems in a single activity or more generalized problems, depending on the exact area of the brain involved. Generalized GME means that there is wide involvement of the brain tissue (diffuse damage). There are usually signs of several neurologic problems occurring at one time with this form of the disease. Ocular GME affects the eyes, causes blindness and may or may not progress to one of the other forms. Localized and ocular GME have a better prognosis than generalized GME. Dogs with local or ocular GME may live for years. Localized GME is often responsive to corticosteroids for very long times, as well, so the dog may have a good quality of life in addition to a longer life. Ocular GME doesn't seem to respond well to treatment based on limited experience with it -- but most dogs adjust to visual impairment pretty well so this may not be an important issue. Unfortunately, generalized GME has a poor prognosis. The symptoms will sometimes resolve, or nearly resolve, pretty rapidly with therapy but it is necessary to continue using immunosuppressive medications, usually corticosteroids, life long. In most cases, the disease will become unresponsive to medications within a few weeks to several months and most pet owners opt for euthanasia when the signs become progressive and stop responding to therapy. When paralysis is present the most likely areas of the brain to be affected are the brain stem, but the cervical spinal cord can also sometimes be involved in the disease process. If the brain stem is involved, some dogs will be severely depressed or can even become comatose, if the response to therapy isn't good. The differential diagnosis list for GME is pretty short. It can be confused with other forms of encephalitis (infectious, toxic) and with cancers affecting the brain. Hepatic encephalopathy can look a lot like GME but usually there are obvious signs of liver disease which make it possible to distinguish that toxic effects of liver disease are causing the neurologic signs. There is no sure way to diagnose GME other than biopsy samples of the brain, which isn't a common procedure in veterinary medicine. Cerebrospinal fluid analysis can be helpful in ruling out other problems and hinting at GME. Computerized tomography (CT) scans or MRI scans can help rule out cancer and can help in identifying focal (local) areas of brain involvement. Both local and generalized GME usually have to be treated continuously and treatment can not generally be withdrawn without a recurrence of symptoms. Generalized GME is almost always fatal. In most cases the prognosis for generalized GME is poor, but I have gotten at least one letter complaining that I was too pessimistic in my opinion of GME, based on a case in which one person's dog had been living with the disease well controlled for over a year. It is usually necessary to use high doses of prednisone or other corticosteroids to get the symptoms to resolve but it is sometimes possible to use lower dosages for maintenance. An effort should be made to see if a lower dose will control the signs once they are well under control. Radiation therapy has been reported to help in a limited number of cases of GME. I hope that this information is useful to you. I understand that sometimes people subscribe when they really want to hear better news than this. We will refund the subscription price under these circumstances if a request to do so is made. Mike Richards, DVM 10/12/2003 http://www.vetinfo4dogs.com/dgme.html http://www.vetinfo.com/dgme.html |
thank you fasteddie oh noooooo!! sushi will be in my thoughts and prayers :( |
Sushi is in my thoughts and prayers as well. :( |
Thank you all for you thoughts and prayers. We should know more in the next 48 hours. |
Sushi's Mom, My Yorkie, Pepper, has what we think is called "Cerebellar Abiotrophy". I'll copy and paste what I have found about this illness below. I just wanted to say that first I hope and pray that Sushi doesn't have GME or any other terrible illness. And second, that I am praying for you both! Watching Pepper's illness progress the way it has breaks my heart because I know now that he has the 2nd type of CA. Pepper is now what I call "Dingy" (almost seems drunk, can't stand or sit without falling over, can't eat or drink without me holding him up, vomits at least once a day...and so on) or his back legs won't support him and keep collapsing on him for about 65% of the time. I will keep checking back to see how your Sushi is doing! Big love and Bigger hugs, Kathy and Sir Pepper **** I finally found a clear description of what Pepper is going through!!! I am 99% sure this is what he has... "What does cerebellar abiotrophy mean to your dog & you? The cerebellum is the part of the brain that regulates the control and coordination of voluntary movement. The clinical signs of cerebellar dysfunction in affected dogs may include poor balance, a wide-based stance (feet planted far apart), stiff or high-stepping gait, apparent lack of awareness of where the feet are (standing or walking with a foot knuckled over), and head or body tremors. These signs worsen either quickly or slowly (see breed list above). Affected dogs may become unable to climb stairs or stand without support. They have normal mental alertness. Where other regions of the brain are also affected, you may see signs such as behaviour change (loss of house training, aggression), confusion, blindness, and seizures. How is cerebellar abiotrophy diagnosed? This is a rare disorder. The clinical signs are suggestive of cerebellar disease, particularly if they are seen in a breed in which abiotrophy is known to occur. Your veterinarian will do tests to rule out other conditions that can cause similar signs. For the veterinarian: Routine diagnostic tests are normal with this condition and a definitive diagnosis can only be made by brain biopsy or on post-mortem. MRI may be helpful in dogs in which there is gross cerebellar malformation; however generally with this condition, the cerebellum appears grossly normal. Histopathologic abnormalities are often minimal and do not seem to correlate with the severity of cerebellar signs. " **** There are 2 types of this illness. In the first the symptoms go to a certain point and stay there. In the second, the symptoms continue to get worse until the dog is crippled and the only kind thing to do is put him to sleep. There is no treatment that I have been able to find, and Peppers vet doesn't know of any. Kathy |
Kathy - it was so good of you to post - As someone who knows what you're going thru with Pepper (my hero) - I want to say thank you for being you - you always are so quick to offer help - and I know you can really relate to this thread - though I wish for BOTH of you - that we never heard of these illnesses and that your yorkies turn out completely healthy...but until that day arrives.... it's so good to see the comfort offered. It's just heartbreaking and I wish there were better words to say here. sushi's_mom ...please let us know how the tests come out - Wishing for the best test results for you and your baby |
Our prayers are with both of you. |
you both are in my thoughts and prayers keep us posted. |
I'm just wondering how Sushi is??? Have you gotten any results back yet? My prayers are with you! Big hugs. Kathy and Sir Pepper |
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