Juvenile myoclonic epilepsy (JME)

LABOKLIN Service ID: 8557

JME in Rhodesian Ridgebacks is characterized by a particular epilepsy phenotype of frequent myoclonic jerks with a mean onset at 6 months of age. The dogs suffer from automatic and sudden twitches notably occuring in recumbent and relaxed situations. These muscle contractions vary in intensity (subtle to vigorous) and frequency. In most cases, jerks last only one second but occur in series. Some dogs appear confused and scared during these events. The attacks arise daily in over 85% of cases. The disease progress to generalized tonic-clonic seizures in about 40% of affected dogs. Treatment with antiepileptic drugs can bring improvement of symptoms.

Method	TaqMan SNP assay
Breed list	Rhodesian Ridgeback
Heredity	autosomal recessive
Duration	3 - 5 days after arrival of the sample in the lab