Background: Noninvasive methods of quantitating exercise tolerance in dogs with neuromuscular disease are needed both for clinical and research use. The 6-minute walk test (6MWT) has been validated as a reliable test of exercise tolerance in dogs with pulmonary and cardiac disease, but not in dogs with neuromuscular disease.
Hypothesis/objectives: Distance walked and number of steps taken during 6MWT will differ between Labrador retriever dogs with centronuclear myopathy (CNM) and control (ie, healthy) littermates.
Animals: Eight purebred Labrador retrievers were drawn from a purpose-bred research colony (status: 3 clear, 2 carrier, and 3 homozygous mutants for the protein tyrosine phosphatase-like A (PTPLA) gene mutation associated with CNM).
Methods: Pilot, prospective, Case-controlled study. Researchers were blinded to disease status. Each dog was leash-trained and acclimatized to the testing area (length, 12.8 m). At the start of testing, each animal was fitted with a pedometer, a timer was started, and dogs were allowed to walk at their own pace for 6 minutes. Distance walked and pedometer readings were recorded.
Results: Degree of paresis varied among affected dogs, and was reflected by significant differences in distance walked between CNM-affected dogs and those with clear and carrier genotypes (P = .048). Pedometer readings did not vary according to genotype (P = .86).
Conclusions: The 6MWT appears to differentiate between the ambulatory capacity of normal and CNM-affected dogs. Additional studies are needed to confirm this relationship in a larger number of dogs, and to evaluate the ability of the 6MWT to differentiate between dogs with variable severity of neuromuscular disease-associated exercise intolerance.
Download full-text PDF |
Source |
---|---|
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4913584 | PMC |
http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/jvim.13939 | DOI Listing |
Enter search terms and have AI summaries delivered each week - change queries or unsubscribe any time!