Blog #9: Can Dogs Alert Patients Prior to a Seizure?

(This blog was originally posted on September 12, 2011)

 

 

 

          The September 5, 2011 issue of PEOPLE magazine featured an article calling attention to a new kind of service dog that can “save lives” in the epilepsy population.

Some pet dogs—any breed, any age, and any size—can predict that a person with epilepsy will have a seizure minutes up to hours before the event occurs. They warn patients by anxious barking, whining, or pawing so that safety precautions can be taken. Medical and neurological literature cites studies examining these assertions. The upshot is that these seizure-alert abilities are possible but much bias can influence these claims. Many studies rely upon patient and family reports of canine and patient behaviors. More studies are encouraged.

No one knows exactly how many dogs have this ability, or how the dogs detect seizures before they occur. They may be born with this remarkable ability, but training to instill this ability is possible, too. Perhaps the dogs pick up visual cueing to a patient’s very subtle mood or behavior change before an aura or a seizure. Additionally, a dog’s special ability to perceive odors may allow it to detect body chemical and electrical changes that theoretically may be emitted prior to seizures.

This capability to predict an impending seizure may strengthen over time as the patient and the dog bond and learn each other’s habits and behaviors. Some canines will demonstrate specific behaviors before its master’s seizure. A “seizure-alerting” dog may lick the patient which seems to abort, or stop, some seizures from occurring. Other dogs touch the patient with a paw, or move in front of the patient as an alert to sit down and to stop walking or to not cross a street. Dogs may emit a special bark to warn the person to get out of a bathtub or shower. They may also alert the person to turn off power tools and get to a safe place, or call for aid. These dogs remain close to their human companions, either standing or lying alongside them, during the seizure.

Overall, the quality of life seems to definitely be improved for people who live with these canines. The companionship can be reassuring and relaxing and this alone can ameliorate some seizures. The seizure-alerts give people courage and confidence to lead more independent and normal lives.

Service dog programs can be found through Websites, such as www.k94life.org, and inquiries made as to requirements, availability, costs, insurance coverage, and etc.

 

Lance Fogan, M.D. is Clinical Professor of Neurology at the David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA. DINGS is his first novel.