Publisher's Synopsis
Allergic diseases in animals are increasingly gaining importance in veterinary practice and as research models. Veterinary allergology has become an important, dedicated veterinary discipline, and allergic disorders of man's best friend slowly gain the awareness they deserve beyond being mere models for human allergies. With increasing standards in veterinary care, intradermal testing and allergen immunotherapy were introduced to small animal practice in the mid-nineteen hundreds; later, serum testing for allergen-specific IgE was developed for dogs, cats and horses. Although atopic asthma is rare in the dog and not much is known with regard to allergic rhinitis, atopic dermatitis is a frequently encountered disease in small animal practice and a focus of research in veterinary dermatology. For intradermal testing and allergen immunotherapy, a good knowledge of relevant allergens for the individual species is of great importance. The purpose of this volume is to review allergic diseases across species and to focus on how these diseases compare to the counterpart in people. Allergy testing methods and modern therapies in canine are dealt with. Flea allergy is one of the most common allergies in the dog. On intradermal testing, positive reactions to fleas are more common than to any other insect. Recent research in dogs has highlighted that skin barrier impairment may be one of the mechanisms of allergic sensitization also in this species when allergens come in contact with a more permeable and disrupted skin which results in a Th2 polarization and production of allergen specific IgE. Although it is not clear yet whether the skin barrier defect is primary in dogs, it is clear that the skin barrier function is impaired in atopic dogs and it plays a role in the aggravation of the disease. Currently, the knowledge about relevant veterinary allergens is based on sensitization rates identified by intradermal testing or serum testing for allergen-specific IgE; crude extracts are the basis for most evaluations. Only a few studies provide evidence about the molecular structure of (particularly) dust mite, insect and mould allergens in dogs and horses, respectively.
