A Dog Resurrected from the Dead

In Today’s episode, we talk about one of my favorite diagnosis and one of my first experiences as a new vet, vestibular disease. “Vestibular” refers to the vestibular apparatus, located in the inner ear, which perceives the body’s orientation with respect to the earth’s gravitational field. This information is then communicated to the brain, eyes, and body, to maintain appropriate posture and balance. Symptoms of vestibular disease are similar to vertigo in people. After experiencing a bout of acute vertigo a couple years ago, I’ve developed new sympathy for these dogs. Towards the end of a busy, normal day, I began to feel so dizzy that I couldn’t safely stand up. Within minutes I was vomiting. I crawled to my bed, where just turning my head on the pillow made me sick. Extrapolate that to dogs… Classic symptoms of vestibular disease in dogs include: loss of balance/ the veterinary term is: ataxia—which manifests in the drunken sailor gait), abnormal posture, head tilt, and nystagmus—the medical term for the rapid, uncontrolled eye movement that is the hallmark of vestibular disease. There is no specific “cure.” We treat these dogs with supportive care on an inpatient or outpatient basis, with lots of TLC, and sometimes acupuncture. A thorough physical and neurologic exam is the most effective place to start sorting out the diagnosis. Idiopathic vestibular disease affects the peripheral vestibular system (in the middle ear) as opposed to the central system (nerves in the brain). With peripheral disease, we do not see mental dullness/stupor, or generalized weakness. The dog’s strength is maintained even though his equilibrium is out of whack.