Page 11 - Clinical Connections - Spring 2022

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Page 11 - Clinical Connections - Spring 2022
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Research News






        CHERRY EYE CONDITION – HIGH-RISK                      INTERVENTION REQUIRED FOR FRENCH
        DOG BREEDS                                            BULLDOGS
          An ºÚÁÏÉç VetCompass project has revealed the true scale of   ºÚÁÏÉç research has concluded that French bulldogs can no longer
        prolapsed nictitating membrane gland (PNMG), commonly known   be considered a ‘typical dog’ from a health perspective. A new
        as ‘cherry eye’, in dogs and identified the breeds at most risk of the   ºÚÁÏÉç  study  indicates the  health  of  French  bulldogs has  strayed
        condition.                                            substantially from non-French bulldogs in the UK and is now largely
          If left untreated, PNMG can cause discomfort and promote   much poorer. The research suggests urgent intervention is required
        complications such as dry eye, conjunctivitis and eye ulceration.   to reduce the high rate of health problems experienced by the breed.
        Surgery is usually required to treat the condition and reposition the   The ºÚÁÏÉç VetCompass study compared the health of random
        affected gland.                                       samples of 2,781 French bulldogs and 21,850 non-French bulldogs.
          The VetCompass study is the largest exploration of PNMG in   A list of the 43 most common disorders across both groups of dogs
        dogs in the world. The research team followed the anonymised   revealed many of the differences in health risk between the two
        veterinary health records of 905,553 dogs for a year and identified   groups were closely associated with the extreme body shape that
        that 0.20% (1,802 dogs) were affected.                defines French bulldogs. This includes a grossly shortened muzzle,
          Some  breeds  showed  very  high  proportions  of  dogs  affected   a large head, skin folds and shortened spine/tail.
        annually, including the Neapolitan mastiff (4.9%), English bulldog   The French bulldog is hugely popular in the UK, with demand
        (4.8%), Lhasa Apso (1.6%) and American cocker spaniel (1.5%).   soaring in recent years. This demand has resulted in huge welfare
        Importantly,  some  popular  designer  crosses  of  flat-faced  breeds   issues, particularly with reference to breathing problems and sore
        were  also  highly  affected,  such  as  the  puggle  [pug  and  beagle]   eyes that are common in the breed. Body exaggerations such as
        (2.1%)  and  Jug  [Jack  Russell  terrier  crossed  with  pug]  (1.2%),   the  flat  face,  big  eyes  and  snuffly  breathing  that  promote  these
        suggesting the recent craze for designer crossbreeds does not   health issues are often perceived as ‘cute’ or ‘normal’ for the breed
        eliminate health issues associated with the parental pure breeds.  and, worryingly, ‘desirable’.
          Additional key findings from the study include:       Efforts to reduce demand for the breed include advice from the
          •   One in every 500 dogs (0.20%) overall in the UK suffer from   UK Brachycephalic Working Group to ‘stop and think before buying
              PNMG every year                                 a flat-faced dog’. The Dutch Kennel Club has even gone as far as
          •   The median age at first diagnosis of PNMG was 0.6 years  to ban the registration of new French bulldog puppies altogether
          •   Brachycephalic [flat-faced] dogs had 6.9 times the risk of   (along with 11 other flat-faced breeds).
              PNMG compared with dogs with medium skull length  The findings of the new study revealed that French bulldogs had
          Seventeen breeds showed increased risk of PNMG compared   higher risk for 20 of the 43 (46.5%) common disorders compared
        with crossbred dogs.  The breeds with the highest risk included   with a lower risk for just 11 of 43 (25.6%) disorders. Narrowed
        Neapolitan mastiff (x 34.3), English bulldog (x 24.1), Lhasa Apso (x   nostrils (stenotic nares) was the disorder with highest risk in French
        12.4), American cocker spaniel (x 11.6), puggle (x 9.5), great Dane   bulldogs, with the breed at 42 times risk of the condition.
        (x 6.2), Saint Bernard (x 5.3) and jug (x 5.2).         Other  conditions  with  the  ultra-high  risk  in  French  bulldogs
          Sixteen breeds showed reduced risk of PNMG compared with   included  Brachycephalic  Obstructive  Airway  Syndrome  (BOAS)
        crossbred dogs.  The breeds with the lowest risk included the   (x 30.9), ear discharge (x 14.4), skin fold dermatitis (x 11.2) and
        German shepherd  dog (x 0.03), West  Highland white terrier (x   difficulty giving birth (x 9.1).
        0.06), English springer spaniel (x 0.07), Labrador retriever (x 0.12)
        and lurcher (x 0.12).                                   An infographic related to news pieces on this page can be
          Purebred dogs had 1.4 times the risk of PNMG compared with   downloaded from the following link.
        crossbred dogs. Dogs aged under one year were at greatest risk of   /vetcompass/audio-visual-resources/
        PNMG (x 10.8) compared with those aged from two to four years.   research-infographics.


            Research paper: O’Neill et al (2022) ‘Breed and conformational predispositions   Research paper: O’Neill et al (2021) ‘French Bulldogs differ to other dogs in the
            for  prolapsed nictitating  membrane  gland (PNMG)  in dogs  in  the  UK:  A   UK in propensity for many common disorders: a VetCompass study’, Canine
        VetCompass study,’ PLoS One                           Medicine and Genetics






















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