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Risk factors associated with equine motor neuron disease: a possible model for human MND
H O Mohammed1, J F Cummings, T J Divers
1Department of Clinical Sciences, College of Veterinary Medicine, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY.
Neurology
|May 1, 1993
Summary
Equine motor neuron disease (EMND) shares similarities with human progressive muscular atrophy (PMA). A study found Quarter horses and older horses are at higher risk for EMND, with a pattern similar to human amyotrophic lateral sclerosis.
Area of Science:
- Veterinary Neurology
- Equine Medicine
- Neurodegenerative Diseases
Background:
- Equine motor neuron disease (EMND) is a newly identified neurodegenerative disorder.
- EMND exhibits clinical similarities to human progressive muscular atrophy (PMA).
- Understanding risk factors for EMND is crucial for diagnosis and management.
Purpose of the Study:
- To compare equine EMND with human PMA.
- To identify intrinsic risk factors associated with EMND through a case-control study.
Main Methods:
- A case-control study was conducted using 32 confirmed EMND cases and 153 control horses.
- Logistic regression analysis was employed to assess risk factors including age, sex, and breed.
- Control horses were diagnosed with cervical stenotic myelopathy, equine degenerative myeloencephalopathy, or protozoan myelitis.
Main Results:
- Quarter horses showed a significantly higher risk for EMND (OR=12.7).
- Thoroughbred horses also had an increased risk (OR=2.9).
- EMND risk increased with age, peaking around 16 years, then declined, mirroring patterns seen in human amyotrophic lateral sclerosis.
Conclusions:
- Breed and age are significant risk factors for equine motor neuron disease.
- Genetic susceptibility factors for EMND may lie outside the major histocompatibility complex.
- EMND's age-related risk pattern resembles that of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis in humans.