Development and validation of a new standardised data collection tool to aid in the diagnosis of canine skin allergies

Abstract

Canine atopic dermatitis (cAD) is a common hereditary clinical syndrome in domestic dogs with no definitive diagnostic tests, which causes marked morbidity and has a high economic impact internationally. We created a novel questionnaire for Labrador (LR) and Golden retriever (GR) owners to evaluate canine skin health with respect to clinical signs of cAD. 4,111 dogs had fully completed questionnaires (2,803 LR; 1,308 GR). ‘Cases’ (793) had a reported veterinary diagnosis of cAD, and ‘controls’ (1652) had no current or past clinical signs of cAD and were aged >3 years. Remaining dogs (1666) were initially categorised as ‘Other’. Simulated annealing was used comparing ‘Cases’ and ‘Others’ to select a novel set of features able to classify a known case. Two feature sets are proposed, one for use on first evaluation and one for dogs with a history of skin problems. A sum for each list when applied to the whole population (including controls) was able to classify ‘Cases’ with a sensitivity of 89% to 94% and specificity of 71% to 69%, respectively, and identify potentially undiagnosed cases. Our findings demonstrate for the first time that owner questionnaire data can be reliably used to aid in the diagnostic process of cAD.

Environmental risk factors for canine atopic dermatitis: a retrospective large‐scale study in Labrador and golden retrievers

“…Four previous case‐control studies have investigated environmental risk factors for cAD, whilst a further two studies employed questionnaire methods to investigate risk factors for allergic signs . For one of the questionnaire studies ≈55% of those classified as cases had a reported veterinary diagnosis of cAD; the number of dogs with a diagnosis of cAD in the second is unknown . Here, we analyzed data for 793 dogs with a veterinary diagnosis of cAD and 1,652 carefully defined controls from two closely related breeds; Labrador and golden retrievers.…”

“…The data analyzed here were collected as part of a retrospective cross‐sectional study in conjunction with the cAD‐RQ, which was completed by owners of pure‐bred Labrador and golden retrievers. Full details of the cAD‐RQ, including distribution methods and demographic details of the entire population, can be found in Harvey et al . Enrolment for the study was open for a four month period in 2017 and it was advertised via the Kennel Club, press releases and social media.…”

“…Dogs whose owners reported them to have received a diagnosis specifically of food allergy and not environmental allergy were excluded, as were dogs whose owners reported them to only have received a diagnosis of flea allergic dermatitis. Validation of this classification of a case as broad‐spectrum cAD is provided in the original report . In total, data from 2,445 dogs consisting of 1,695 Labrador retrievers (69%) and 750 golden retrievers (31%) were used for this analysis, of which 793 were classed as cases (575 Labrador and 218 golden retrievers) and 1,652 as controls (1,120 Labrador and 532 golden retrievers).…”

“…A questionnaire‐based tool, the canine atopic dermatitis research questionnaire (cAD‐RQ), was developed for collecting epidemiological information on cAD and associated skin diseases in dogs, directly from their owners . Such a tool offers the ability to collect detailed information on skin conditions in dogs on a larger scale than has ever been seen before.…”

Atopic dermatitis in West Highland white terriers – part I: natural history of atopic dermatitis in the first three years of life

“…When using published criteria, a lower prevalence was found (41 versus 52%) because several mild cases included herein did not meet criteria. Several other definitions have been proposed, where the diagnosis was based mainly on owners’ reports, but no such proxy assessment fitted the present needs. Moreover, the broad definition used herein is similar to those used in other clinical studies .…”