Surgical Management of a Canine Encephalocele Communicating with the Nasal Cavity

An encephalocele is a rare congenital or acquired cranial defect characterized by herniation of intracranial tissue through a defect in the skull base. In human and veterinary medicine, these lesions are frequently associated with abnormalities in neural tube development or structural weakness of the cranial bones, resulting in the protrusion of brain tissue and meninges through anatomical openings such as the cribriform plate. Although this condition has been extensively described in human neurosurgical research, reports on dogs remain limited, and the clinical significance of surgical intervention in cases with communication to the nasal cavity remains unclear. In this case, a young American Cocker Spaniel presented with seizures, prompting advanced diagnostic evaluation. Magnetic resonance imaging revealed a protrusion of the intracranial tissue through a defect in the cribriform plate extending into the nasal cavity. Surgical resection of the protruding tissue was performed, followed by skull base reconstruction. Histopathological examination demonstrated nervous tissue with chronic inflammatory changes without evidence of neoplasia. The patient recovered uneventfully after surgery and remained free of seizure recurrence during follow-up. Surgical management may represent a viable treatment option for seizure disorders in young dogs, particularly when persistent cranio-nasal communication is present, and provides a clinically relevant comparative model for similar cranial base defects described in human pathology.