Epidemiological survey of dermatophytosis in meat rabbits with alopecia in Portugal

Abstract

An epidemiological dermatophytosis survey was carried out in farmed rabbits with alopecia in Northern and Central Portugal. Between August and October 2008, samples from suspected clinical cases of alopecia in meat rabbits on industrial farms were collected and cultured by conventional methods. Effects on the prevalence of several variables, such as breed, age, month of sample collection, configuration of the lesions and presence of concomitant infections in the rabbitries were evaluated using a logistic regression model. The overall prevalence of dermatophytes species was 82.7% (95% confidence interval,CI: 80.1-85.3%). Two dermatophytes species were isolated: Trichophyton mentagrophytes (91.9%) and Microsporum canis (8.1%). Five variables were associated with dermatophyte isolation in univariate analysis. The multivariate logistic regression model identified configuration of lesions (odds ratio, OR=3.15; 95% CI: 1.39-7.15%) and the presence of concomitant infections on the farms (OR=2.71; 95% CI: 1.03-7.12%) as risk factors. Considering the paucity of epidemiological reports in this country, these results could make a useful contribution towards the diagnosis and prevention of rabbit dermatophytosis.

Prevalence and Risk Factors of Zoonotic Dermatophyte Infection in Pet Rabbits in Northern Taiwan

“…Taiwan belongs to the sub-tropical and tropical regions; therefore, the hot and humid climate makes a suitable environmental condition for dermatophyte infection and transmission, and less seasonal variation on the prevalence of dermatophyte infection. In the present study, no gender-related differences in the prevalence were found, which is similar to the previous studies [ 7 , 12 , 17 , 20 , 45 , 53 ]. Although the findings of this study showed that the age ranges were not associated with dermatophyte infection in rabbits, age has been identified as a predisposing factor for dermatophytosis in rabbits, and young rabbits or immuno-compromised rabbits are considered to be the most susceptible to infection [ 11 , 17 , 45 , 50 ].…”

“…In the present study, no gender-related differences in the prevalence were found, which is similar to the previous studies [ 7 , 12 , 17 , 20 , 45 , 53 ]. Although the findings of this study showed that the age ranges were not associated with dermatophyte infection in rabbits, age has been identified as a predisposing factor for dermatophytosis in rabbits, and young rabbits or immuno-compromised rabbits are considered to be the most susceptible to infection [ 11 , 17 , 45 , 50 ]. One possible reason is that the immune system has not completely developed, and there are lower levels of fungistatic fatty acids in the sebum of young rabbits [ 54 , 55 ].…”

“…T. mentagrophytes is the most common dermatophyte species to infect rabbits from laboratories, veterinary clinics, pet shops, and rabbit farms [ 3 , 7 , 9 , 11 , 12 , 17 , 43 , 44 , 45 ]. In addition to T. mentagrophytes , the rabbits reared in the farms were also reported to be infected with M. canis [ 3 , 8 , 9 , 17 ]. Based on our findings, the T. mentagrophyte complex is also the predominant dermatophyte (96.5%) that infects pet rabbits in Northern Taiwan.…”

“…Dermatophytoses are common fungal infections in rabbit farm, laboratory, and pet rabbits [ 3 , 7 , 8 , 9 , 10 , 11 , 12 , 13 , 14 ]. The most common agents of dermatophytoses in rabbits belong to the T. mentagrophytes complex and M. canis species [ 3 , 4 , 8 , 12 , 15 , 16 , 17 ]. The infections may cause alopecia, redness scaly, and scurf localized mainly on the rabbit face, head, auricles, and dorsal area of the neck [ 18 , 19 , 20 ].…”

Prevalence and distribution of dermatophytosis lesions on cattle in Plateau State, Nigeria

“…This is in agreement with the findings of Moreira et al . [32] and that of Bhatia and Sharma [16] who found higher rates by direct examination than by culture when they studied skin samples obtained from dermatophytosis affected rabbits and humans, respectively, and concluded that direct examination was a rapid and efficient method for presumptive diagnosis of ringworm infection. However, it is at variance with the findings of Gupta et al .…”