Dermatophytosis is a superficial fungal infection of the skin and hair caused by pathogenic fungi called dermatophytes. The most common dermatophytes that affect cats and dogs are Microsporum canis, Microsporum gypseum, and Trichophyton mentagrophytes. Dermatophytosis can cause various clinical signs, such as hair loss, scaling, crusting, erythema, papules, hyperpigmentation, and pruritus. Sometimes, it can also cause nodular lesions called kerions.
Dermatophytosis Testing in Clinical Practice
To diagnose dermatophytosis in cats and dogs, there are several tests available. One of them is the Wood’s lamp examination, which is a rapid screening tool that can detect fluorescence of some infected hairs. However, this test is not very sensitive or specific, as not all dermatophytes fluoresce and some other substances can also fluoresce. Another test is the direct examination of hairs or scales from lesions under a microscope, which can confirm the invasion of the skin or hair follicles by fungal elements. However, this test cannot identify the species of the dermatophyte. A third test is the fungal culture, which can determine the presence and species of dermatophytes by growing them on a special medium. However, this test can take several weeks to yield results and may be contaminated by environmental fungi. A fourth test is the PCR test, which can detect the DNA of dermatophytes on the hair coat within 1–3 working days. However, this test cannot distinguish between viable and nonviable spores or between infection and carriage
The Ringbio Dermatophytosis Rapid Test Kit
The Ringbio Dermatophytosis Rapid Test Kit is a 15min lateral flow immunoassay for the rapid detection of dermatophytosis in skin swabs of cats and dog. It is fast, simple and easy-to-use. Based on the specific reaction of fungal antibodies, this kit can detect a range of pathogens that cause dermatophytosis, which further enable the kit to detect dermatophytosis more accurately.
According to an internal comparison with microscope, the specificity of this kit is over 95% and the sensitivity is higher than microscope. The overall accuracy is over 98%.
