Malaysia Veterinary Forum (Archive)

horatio · Joined: 12 Jan 2006 Posts: 149 Location: KL but PJ soon

Good day dear drs,
I hv a question to ask abt Moist Dermatitis (commonly known as Hot Spots) and Fungus infection on cats.

1. How wud one identify n differentiate btw these 2 visually?
2. What wud b the treatment given/prescribed to the cat?
3. Is quarantined needed?
4. What wud b other precautious shud an owner take to prevent the infected area to be spread to other parts of the body / to other cats.

Thank you in advance.

horatio · Joined: 12 Jan 2006 Posts: 149 Location: KL but PJ soon

errmmm drs,
i'm waiting for a reply.... 8)

MaRLa · Joined: 14 Jan 2006 Posts: 7 Location: miri, sarawak

hello Horatio, off topic :- makanan apa u bagi kat ur cat. nampak montel montel.

Dr Nat · Joined: 07 Dec 2005 Posts: 1834 Location: Klang Valley

Acute moist dermatitis or “hot spots” is a superficial bacterial infection of the skin. It is usually a result of something else, most commonly self-trauma (scratching, rubbing, biting). These self-trauma can be because of many other reasons, including fleas, external parasites, food allergy, fungal infection, etc (yes, that means hot spots can occur TOGETHER with fungal infections)

Fungal infection, there are two main types that affect cats; ringworm and sporotrichosis. Ringworm is normally caused by Trichophyton or Mircosporum, whilst sporotrichosis is normally caused by Sporothrix. All these organism are found naturally in the soil. It may also transmit to humans through contact and scratches/minor wounds.

How to identify:

Hot spots: reddish skin with oozing/moist area. The oozing serum might result in matted hair with dried serum. Sometimes it will be complicated with bacterial infection, resulting in pus around the area. Excessive scratching will result in hair loss around the area. True hot spot may be easy to spot, but most of the time it is complicated with other infection. So, it may be difficult to recognise it.

Ringworm: typical lesion for ringworm is round, hairless area with reddish periphery. If look closely, the hair shaft is actually broken off. With long term infection, the hairless area will become larger and irregularly shaped. Scaling may be present. Sometimes the lesions are itchy.

ringworm on cat and human

Sporotrichosis: Lesions are raw, ulcerative and non-healing (means even if you’ve treated it for weeks, the lesion is still there). Most of the time, it is infected with bacteria and oozing pus. In other words, the lesions look like an abscess that has burst. With long term infection, it can infect the respiratory system. Meaning, the fungus will spread to the sinus and nose (and lungs).

Click here to see a severely affected cat (beware: viewer discretion is advised!)
http://img8.imageshack.us/my.php?image=sporocat3um.jpg

How to treat?

Hot spots: Easier said than done… just remove the cause! The hard part is to identify the cause.

Ringworm: With ringworm it is treatable, though it may take weeks or months to treat. Can be treated with oral antifungal tables, antifungal cream or shampoos (or all together, depending on the severity).

Sporotrichosis: Can also be treatable, depending on the severity. Treatment will take months and the antifungal drugs may be quite costly overall. However, if treating this cat, one has to keep the cat under quarantine, away from other cats and humans too! Preferably, I would recommend that the cat be humanely euthanized, because of the possible public health risk.

Is quarantine needed?
As with all infectious diseases, yes. (especially so for sporotrichosis and ringworm)

Other precautions:

Hot spots: identify the cause first. Determine if it is infectious. If it is, then isolate the cat, and check for lesions on the other cats.

Fungal: isolate/quarantine the cats, finish the antifungal medications that is prescribed by the vet (even when it looks like it has healed), bathe the cat with antifungal shampoo. You may also bathe other cats that were exposed with antifungal shampoo, and keep a lookout for the lesions on other cats. Lastly: WASH YOUR OWN HANDS AFTER TOUCHING THE CAT WITH AN ANTISEPTIC SOAP (e.g. DETTOL).

horatio · Joined: 12 Jan 2006 Posts: 149 Location: KL but PJ soon

Thanks for that explanations, Dr. Nat. Luckily I took Biology b4 n so it makes easier for me to digest such info.

Many thanks again... 8)

Dr Nat · Joined: 07 Dec 2005 Posts: 1834 Location: Klang Valley

I try to get it as "Layman" as I can.. :)

Dr Chong · Joined: 12 Dec 2005 Posts: 666 Location: KL

Haha, nice explanation...