Clinical Abnormalities Pertaining to Malassezia dermatitis in Dogs

Author: Saindla Rakesh, Kabita Roy, Ashish Kumar Soni, Devendra Gupta, Anju Nayak, Pratibha Pathak, Ithrineni Karthik, Aditya Pratap and Kotari Beulah Ramyavani

Download PDF

Abstract

Malassezia dermatitis is a relatively common pruritic dermatosis caused by the yeast Malassezia pachydermatis. As Malassezia dermatitis mimics many other pruritic dermatoses and is usually secondary to them, screening of a large number of samples and differential diagnosis of the disease is quite challenging. The present study was undertaken to record the clinical abnormalities of the dogs affected with Malassezia dermatitis. During the study period, from April 2022 to September 2022, a total of 2974 dogs were screened. Of these, 736 dogs (24.75%) demonstrated clinical signs indicative of Malassezia dermatitis and were subjected to cytological examination for confirmation. Out of 736 dogs screened, 106 dogs were found affected with Malassezia dermatitis by acetate tape impression smear examination. Cytological examination of the acetate tape impression smears upon new methylene blue staining revealed the presence of blue coloured footprint/ peanut shaped budding yeast cells. Upon culture, Malassezia pachydermatis colonies on SDA were observed as smooth, convex, white, or creamy with a pasty texture initially after 36 to 48 hours of incubation at 37ºC that later became dry, wrinkled and light brown with the advancement of age. Mild to intense pruritus, alopecia, erythema, rancid odour, ear affections, scaling, hyper pigmentation and lichenification are the predominant clinical signs noticed in Malassezia dermatitis. Though the lesions were uniformly spread and distributed throughout the body of the affected dogs, they were predominantly seen at the ventral neck, followed by external ear/ auricular, interdigital spaces and least on the face, muzzle/ lips. Further, 49 dogs (46.23 per cent) were associated with concurrent infections/ conditions viz. demodicosis and tick infestation (24.49 %), followed by pyoderma (20.41 %), sarcoptic mange and dermatophytosis (8.16 %), diabetes mellitus, hypothyroidism and flea allergic dermatitis (4.08 %) and renal failure (2.04 %).

Keywords

Malassezia dermatitis, Jabalpur, cytological examination, dogs, demodicosis

Conclusion

Various diagnostic methods, including direct slide impression smears, acetate tape impressions, and cotton swab smears, can be utilized to diagnose malasseziosis. However, cytological examination of the acetate tape impression smears coupled with staining and culture was found superior to other tests in diagnosing Malassezia dermatitis. Mild to intense pruritus, alopecia, erythema, rancid odour, ear affections, scaling, hyperpigmentation and lichenification are the predominant clinical signs noticed in Malassezia dermatitis. The lesions were predominantly seen at the ventral neck, followed by external ear/ auricular, interdigital spaces, and least on the face, muzzle/ lips. Further, demodicosis and tick infestation (24.49 %) were the predominant concurrent infections/ conditions associated with Malassezia dermatitis.

References

-

How to cite this article

Saindla Rakesh, Kabita Roy, Ashish Kumar Soni, Devendra Gupta, Anju Nayak, Pratibha Pathak, Ithrineni Karthik, Aditya Pratap and Kotari Beulah Ramyavani (2023). Clinical Abnormalities Pertaining to Malassezia dermatitis in Dogs. Biological Forum – An International Journal, 15(9): 244-250.