Ringworm Infection In Cats

Ringworm or Dermatophytosis occurs as a fungal infection in cats and dogs. It affects hair, skin and nails of the animal and can also spread to humans. The infection gives rise to ring like lesions in humans but rarely so in cats and dogs. Usually Microsporum canis, Microsporum gypseum and Trichophyton mentagrophytes causes ringworm infection in cats and dogs. These funguses are found either on the infected animal or in the living shelter of infected animals. The spores shed into the surroundings by the infected animals can survive for over 18 months.

Transmission

Fungal spores are scattered in the environment, where the infected cats live. These spores can also be acquired from the outdoor dirt and surroundings. When a healthy cat comes in contact with these spores, they develop a ringworm lesion. However, some cats with good immunity simply carry the spores and transmit them to other healthy cats without developing lesions. Most of the healthy adult cats have natural resistance against ringworm and therefore they develop the symptoms of the infection.

Symptoms

The most prominent sign of ringworm infection is rapidly growing circular dry skin patches, with red, crusty and raised areas, marked by frequent inflammation. The lesion is devoid of hair and has scaly skin in the center. It might start as small spot but continue to grow in size. It appears commonly on head, ear and tail. In case of acute infection, these lesions might spread all over the body. Young kittens are most commonly infected with such diseases due to under developed immune system.

Diagnosis

Ringworm can be diagnosed in a number of ways including:

• Woods Lamp A Woods lamp is a specialized black light which can be used for identifying ringworm infection in skin lesions. When this light is thrown over the infected skin area, the presence of ringworm species is indicated by fluorescence. However, only 50% of M.canis species will fluoresce and therefore this method is not effective in detecting all types of fungal infection.
• Hair Examination Another method to identify the presence of ringworm is to pluck a hair from the infected area and examine it under a microscope after treating it with a preparation of KOH. About 40-70% of ringworm or fungal infections can be diagnosed in this way.
• Culture This is the best method for diagnosis of fungal infection. The scales and crust are collected from the infected area or lesion and their culture is set up. It takes about 14 days to get the results.

Treatment

A healthy cat or kitten with strong immune system will get alright without treatment in about 3 months. However, in severe cases, different treatments are used. For isolated lesions, topical therapy on skin lesions proves to be effective. The lesions can be treated by applying topical antifungal medication, twice a day. Another treatment method involves administration of oral antifungal agents. These are effective for cats with severe generalized lesions and infected nails. Certain injectible ringworm vaccines are also available for cats. This medication must be accompanied with effective cleaning plan, which includes use of diluted cleaners that kills most of the organisms causing infections. Grooming tools, kennels, bedding and living area must be thoroughly disinfected to prevent the spread of infection.