Cat Ringworm

Infectious skin disease in cats

- Vet. Amir Ahmed Yousef

Boha, an Egyptian Cat, was brought to my clinic one month ago. She was suffering from general hair loss with patches on her head devoid of hair. When I examined her, I found crusts and scales on these patches. Further, I used my Ultra-violet lamp in order to closely examine Boha’s skin. After thorough examination, I found fluorescence of these patches; this is a rapid technique to diagnose a very common skin disease in cats, called as cat ringworm or dermatophytosis. I told Ms. Nagwan (Boha’s parent) that Boha is suffering from dermatophytosis and this is a zoonotic disease i.e. it can be transmitted from cats to humans. I started giving her Vacderm (intramuscular injection against dermatophytosis), 3 injections with a gap of 12 days each. Along with that I gave her a local cream ‘Miconaz’, to be applied twice daily for a span of 21 days. I advised Ms. Nagwan to let Boha sit in the sun daily especially after sunrise and before sunset for about half an hour as the sun plays vital role in treatment of this disease. Further, I prescribed her immulant syrup (immunostimulant drug) with the dosage of 2 ml daily for complete one month.