Immunosuppressive treatment for myositis of acute masticatory muscles: Case report

Abstract

Muscle myositis is an inflammation of the muscles responsible for mastication of dogs, being an idiopathic and autoimmune disease. It can occur in dogs of any breed, with a higher prevalence in young and middle-aged dogs. Among the clinical signs may be reluctance to feed, excessive salivation, oedema of the temporal muscles, pain when opening the jaw, atrophy of the muscles that make up the mastication, among others. Therapy is the use of immunosuppressive doses of corticosteroids, regressing gradually, and may be associated with supportive therapy, such as in the use of gastric shields. The objective of the present study was to report a clinical case of a female dog with no defined race whose clinical signs presented were edema of the temporal and masseter muscles, third eyelid prolapse, salivation and trismus. The diagnosis was based on the patient's history, findings on the physical examination and results of the complementary tests performed as a complete blood count. The objective of the present study was to report the clinical follow - up of a patient diagnosed with the same disease.