skin and hair analysis

erythema

redness

urticaria

hives

pyoderma

skin infection

atopy

allergic skin disease

otitis

ear infection

pros and cons of tape strips

• easy

• low stress

• multiple samples from multiple locations

• easily contaminated

• not always reliable

• uncomfortable

what can a tape strip doagnose?

• superficial parasites

• harvest mites

• cheyletiella

• lice

• fleas

direct impressions pros and cons

• quick and easy

• cheap

• analysed in house

• not painful

• good on moist areas

• potential to contaminate

• cannot always sample the whole area

• can’t get into hard to reach areas

diagnoses from a direct impression

• bacteria

• neoplastic cells

• dermatitis

• fungi

• pyoderma

• inflammatory cells

coat brushings pros and cons

• non-invasive

• quick and simple

• good for superficial parasites

• target areas

• cheap

• not good for burrowing parasites

coat brushing diagnoses

• fleas

• mites

• lice

• ticks

• dermatophytes = ringworm spores.

hair plucks pros and cons

• quick and easy

• effective at diagnosing demodex

• uncomfortable - good temperament

hair pluck diagnoses

• demodex

• hair itself - find cause of loss

• ringworm

• fungi

• self inflicted hair loss - broken hair shafts

skin scrapes pros and cons

• quick and cheap

• can do inhouse

• usually done conscious

• traumatic

• false negatives

• can introduce infection on immunosuppressed.

• patient may not allow

2 types of skin scrape

superficial - top layer

dep - squeeze and scrape until capillary ooze

degree for a skin scrape

45 degrees

skin scrape diagnoses

external parasites - sarcoptes scabiei and notoedres

ringworm

swab pros and cons

• good for bacterial infections

• yeast infections

• effective

• trauma to ears if done wrong

• may have to be sent away - time and cost

• sedated?

• infection risk - both ears

swab diagnoses

bacterial growth

Other name for a hair pluck

trichogram

trichography

examining the hair follicle

what is wood’s lamp?

UV lamp - anything that isn’t fungi will show up and light up.

not reliable

• easy and non-invasive, quick

• false readings and a lot of infections wouldn’t show up.