Introduction: Congenital hydrocephalus (CH) is a common neurologic disorder in dogs defined as an increased cerebrospinal fluid volume within the cranial cavity with no any specific causes. The diagnosis of this disease is based on the clinical features and imagistic examination (ultrasonography, CT, MRI) of the brain. Electroencephalography (EEG) is the best electrodiagnostic test in trying to assess the impact of hydrocephalus on electric activity of the brain . T he aim of this study is to describe short time EEG changes in dogs with CH. Materials and Methods: EEG was performed on 6 dogs with congenital hydrocephalus under general anaesthesia with medetomidine hydrochloride 0.05 mg/kg inj. EEGs were obtained via five subdermal stainless steel needle electrodes as described by Redding (1978). In EEG recoding the parameters used were: sensitivity = 70μV/cm; time constant = 0.3 seconds; Hf = 70 Hz; Lf = 0.5 Hz; notch filter inserted; impedance of all electrodes 10 kΩ. The results of the present study revealed abnormalities in EEG background activity in all dogs. Focal abnormalities were seen in 5 patients (slow waves in 2 dogs, spikes and sharp waves in 2 dogs, focal attenuation in 2 cases) and generalized abnormal activities in 4 dogs (generalized slow waves in 4 dogs and generalised spikes and sharp waves in 1 dog). The percentage of EEG interictal epileptiform discharges (66.67% of dogs had spikes, sharp waves, spikes and sharp waves complexes) was greater than seizures clinical seen (33.33% of dogs). In conclusion , EEG gived us important information about the severity of changes induced by hydrocephalus. Furthermore, this test is useful in the diagnosis of seizures associated with hydrocephalus and allows monitoring the therapeutic effects of antiepileptic drugs.
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