Abstract
A 2-year-old spayed female Persian cat presented to Kangwon National University Veterinary Medical Teaching Hospital with pruritus and erythema on the tips of both ears, around the eyes, and in the caudal abdomen. This patient had previously been prescribed prednisolone, but did not respond positively to the treatment. A skin screening test revealed that there were no fleas or fungi, and that only cocci were present. Blood testing revealed no remarkable findings. The patient was prescribed antibiotics (amoxicillin-clavulanic acid 25 mg/kg for 2 weeks) with no prednisolone. After 2 weeks, clinical signs were alleviated and the skin screening test showed no signs of cocci. However, clinical signs recurred even with the prescription of antibiotics. Four weeks after the steroid-free interval, Malassezia spp. hypersensitivity was detected upon a serum allergy test, and pathological analysis confirmed eosinophilic and mastocytic superficial dermatitis in the caudal abdomen. Based on these results, we suspected allergic dermatitis and prescribed 7 mg/kg cyclosporine A once a day. After 3 weeks, clinical signs were resolved. Seven weeks after the first trial with cyclosporine A, we reduced the cyclosporine A dose to 7 mg/kg every other day. The patient's symptoms have since been well controlled for 6 months. This study suggests that cyclosporine A can be a good choice for treating cats with suspected allergic dermatitis that has not responded positively to steroid treatment.
