Medicine and Health Sciences Commons^™

An Analysis Of The Use Of Dogs In Predicting Human Toxicology And Drug Safety, Jarrod Bailey, Michelle Thew, Michael Balls

Jarrod Bailey, PhD

Dogs remain the main non-rodent species in preclinical drug development. Despite the current dearth of new drug approvals and meagre pipelines, this continues, with little supportive evidence of its value or necessity. To estimate the evidential weight provided by canine data to the probability that a new drug may be toxic to humans, we have calculated Likelihood Ratios (LRs) for an extensive dataset of 2,366 drugs with both animal and human data, including tissue-level effects and Medical Dictionary for Regulatory Activities (MedDRA) Level 1–4 biomedical observations. The resulting LRs show that the absence of toxicity in dogs provides virtually no …

Prevalence Of Disorders Recorded In Cavalier King Charles Spaniels Attending Primary-Care Veterinary Practices In England, Jennifer F. Summers, Dan G. O'Neill, David B. Church, Peter C. Thomson, Paul D. Mcgreevy, David C. Brodbelt

Epidemiology Collection

Background: Concerns have been raised over breed-related health issues in purebred dogs, but reliable prevalence estimates for disorders within specific breeds are sparse. Electronically stored patient health records from primary-care practice are emerging as a useful source of epidemiological data in companion animals. This study used large volumes of health data from UK primary-care practices participating in the VetCompass animal health surveillance project to evaluate in detail the disorders diagnosed in a random selection of over 50% of dogs recorded as Cavalier King Charles Spaniels (CKCSs). Confirmation of breed using available microchip and Kennel Club (KC) registration data was attempted. …

Prevalence Of And Risk Factors For Degenerative Mitral Valve Disease In Dogs Attending Primary‐Care Veterinary Practices In England, M. Mattin, A. Boswood, D. B. Church, J. López-Alvarez, P. D. Mcgreevy, D. G. O'Neill, P. C. Thomson, D. C. Brodbelt

Epidemiology Collection

Background

To date, epidemiological studies on degenerative mitral valve disease (DMVD) in dogs have largely reported referral caseloads or been limited to predisposed breeds. Analysis of primary‐care data to identify factors associated with DMVD would help clinicians identify high‐risk individuals and improve understanding.

Objectives

To estimate the prevalence of and identify risk factors for DMVD in dogs attending primary‐care veterinary practices in England.

Animals

Cases were identified within the electronic patient records of 111,967 dogs attending 93 practices. Four hundred and 5 dogs were diagnosed with DMVD (diagnosed cases) and a further 3,557 dogs had a heart murmur (HM) consistent …

Prevalence And Risk Factors For Mast Cell Tumours In Dogs In England, Stephanie J.W. Shoop, Stephanie Marlow, David B. Church, Kate English, Paul D. Mcgreevy, Anneliese J. Stell, Peter C. Thomson, Dan G. O'Neill, David C. Brodbelt

Epidemiology Collection

Background

Mast cell tumour (MCT) appears to be a frequent tumour type in dogs, though there is little published in relation to its frequency in dogs in the UK. The current study aimed to investigate prevalence and risk factors for MCTs in dogs attending English primary-care veterinary practices.

Methods

Electronic patient records from practices participating in the VetCompass animal surveillance project between July 2007 and June 2013 were searched for MCT diagnosis. Various search terms and standard diagnostic terms (VeNom codes) identified records containing MCT diagnoses, which were evaluated against clinical criteria for inclusion to the study. MCT prevalence for …

Approaches To Canine Health Surveillance, Dan G. O'Neill, David B. Church, Paul D. Mcgreevy, Peter C. Thomson, Dave C. Brodbelt

Epidemiology Collection

Effective canine health surveillance systems can be used to monitor disease in the general population, prioritise disorders for strategic control and focus clinical research, and to evaluate the success of these measures. The key attributes for optimal data collection systems that support canine disease surveillance are representativeness of the general population, validity of disorder data and sustainability. Limitations in these areas present as selection bias, misclassification bias and discontinuation of the system respectively. Canine health data sources are reviewed to identify their strengths and weaknesses for supporting effective canine health surveillance. Insurance data benefit from large and well-defined denominator populations …