Muscular Pictures Of Dogs With Masticatory Muscle Myositis

Mmm is caused by an immune mediated process targeted against specific muscle fibers.

Muscular pictures of dogs with masticatory muscle myositis. In a recent study researchers at the university of pennsylvania school of veterinary medicine addressed a lack of existing literature on mmm by describing 22 cases of canine mmm treated at the. There is a blood test that was developed at the university of california at san diego that will test for these antibodies. Masticatory muscle myositis mmm is an immune system disorder in which the dogs immune system identifies the dogs own muscle tissue as foreign and attacks it. The masticatory muscles are the muscles involved with chewing.

Dogs with mmm cannot open their mouths without excruciating pain. Tetanus abscesses polymyositis a similar condition that affects all the muscles of the body jaw dislocation muscular dystrophy and abnormal bone growth could all cause these symptoms. The immune system attacks the bodys own muscles. Dogs that have been diagnosed with masticatory muscle myositis produce antibodies against the 2m muscle fibers.

Early identification and intervention are needed to maximize the likelihood of a meaningful response. This condition is called masticatory myositis and it is very painful. A biopsy from the temporalis muscle is also recommended to determine the severity of masticatory muscle myositis. The take away message about masticatory myositis in dogs the immune system can attack and damage a dogs chewing muscles.

Diagnosing and treating masticatory muscle myositis in dogs there are a number of other conditions that can cause symptoms similar to those of mmm. Overview of masticatory muscle myositis in dogs.