Prevalence of canine atopic dermatitis at the Veterinary Hospital of the “Universidade Federal Rural da Amazônia” in Belém/Pará, Brazil

ABSTRACT: Canine atopic dermatitis (CAD) is a pruritic, chronic inflammatory disease, recurrent and genetically predisposed, which is the second most frequent allergic skin disorder, and ranks second among all the causes of pruritus in dogs worldwide. Given the absence of data on the occurrence of CAD in the northern region of Brazil, the aim of the current study was to conduct a survey to define the prevalence of canine atopic dermatitis attended at the Dermatology Department of the Mário Dias Teixeira Veterinary Hospital of the “Universidade Federal Rural da Amazônia” (HOVET-UFRA). To determine the prevalence of CAD, a retrospective survey was carried out of clinical records and results of dermatological examinations conducted at the Dermatology Department of HOVET-UFRA Belém, Pará from October 2018 to October 2019. During this period, 456 dogs were examined, of which 25.65% (117) were diagnosed with atopic dermatitis. Among the animals diagnosed, 62.4% (73) were females and 51.7% (29) were of the Shih-tzu breed. This level of atopic dermatitis is considered high. There are still no exact data on the incidence and prevalence of this dermatopathy, with described occurrence ranging from 3 to 15% of the canine population, a geographical relationship may be present. Although a sex-related predisposition has not been proven, a higher incidence of atopy in females is described, which indicated this may be the case. The most commonly diagnosed dogs in this study were the Shih-tzu breed. It is suspected that the regional popularity of some breeds, or the different genetic backgrounds in different geographical areas, may affect the predominance of CAD in some breeds. The results of the present study demonstrate the need for more research on the prevalence of canine atopic dermatitis, and better means of characterizing the population of atopic dogs in the region, so that it is possible to obtain a reliable epidemiological profile.