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Epidemiological Findings and Laboratory Evaluation of Sporotrichosis: A Description of 103 Cases in Cats and Dogs in Southern Brazil

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Abstract

Sporotrichosis is a subcutaneous mycosis, which affects mainly small animals, and is considered an important public health disease. This paper describes the epidemiological and laboratory characteristics of 103 clinical cases of sporotrichosis diagnosed over a 10-year period in southern Brazil. The 92 cats and 11 dogs from eight municipalities in Rio Grande do Sul State developed especially the disseminated cutaneous and fixed cutaneous forms of the disease. Respiratory signs such as sneezing, serous nasal discharge and dyspnea were found in about 57% of the animals. The detection of Sporothrix schenckii in different clinical samples showed highest isolation in testicles (46.6%), oral cavity (45.2%) and conjunctival mucosa (38.1%). A differentiated histological pattern was found between the fixed cutaneous and disseminated cutaneous (DC) manifestations of the disease; well-organized granulomas of nodular distribution and various fungal structures prevailed in the DC form in cats. Melanin detection in S. schenckii cells by the Fontana–Masson technique was positive in 45.4% of the samples. The study revealed that the State of Rio Grande do Sul is an endemic sporotrichosis area and demonstrated the possibility of involvement of other pathways in the infection and spread of the disease. In addition, it emphasized the importance of laboratory tests for mycosis confirmation, especially in dogs that develop clinical manifestations without the presence of cutaneous lesions.

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Acknowledgments

The authors would like to thank Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (CNPq, Proc. 550083/2009-0 and 474533/2004-2) for financing this research, Tatiane Barbosa for the technical support and Dr. Luiz Carlos Severo of the Laboratório de Micologia, Santa Casa de Misericórdia de Porto Alegre, RS, Brasil for the Fontana–Masson technique assistance.

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The authors have no conflict of interest.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Laboratory of Infectious Diseases, Department of Preventive Veterinary, Veterinary School, Federal University of Pelotas, Rua Gonçalves Chaves 3435, Pelotas, Rio Grande do Sul, 96015-560, Brazil

    Isabel Martins Madrid, Antonella Souza Mattei & Mário Carlos Araújo Meireles

  2. Department of Pathology, Veterinary School, Federal University of Pelotas, Pelotas, Brazil

    Cristina Gevehr Fernandes

  3. Department of Veterinary Clinic, Veterinary School, Federal University of Pelotas, Pelotas, Brazil

    Márcia de Oliveira Nobre

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  1. Isabel Martins Madrid
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  2. Antonella Souza Mattei
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  4. Márcia de Oliveira Nobre
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  5. Mário Carlos Araújo Meireles
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Correspondence to Isabel Martins Madrid.

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Madrid, I.M., Mattei, A.S., Fernandes, C.G. et al. Epidemiological Findings and Laboratory Evaluation of Sporotrichosis: A Description of 103 Cases in Cats and Dogs in Southern Brazil. Mycopathologia 173, 265–273 (2012). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11046-011-9509-4

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