FELINE ATOPY: UNDERDIAGNOSED! THERAPEUTIC ALTERNATIVE!

摘要

Feline atopy is the most common hypersensitivity disorder seen in the cat after flea bite allergy. Although the pathogenesis of this disease in the cat has not been as well "worked out" as it has in the dog, several similarities exist. Affected cats do have measurable antigen-specific IgE, and these antibodies are used in various monoclonal and polyclonal in vitro detection systems. In dogs, the major route through which antigens access the body to both initiate and perpetuate the allergic response is through transcutaneous absorption of allergens. Inhalation and ingestion of allergens are thought to play a lesser role. Cellular changes within the skin, including increased numbers of CD la Langerhans cells, increased CD4+ and cD8+ cells, and highernumbers of IL-4-producing cells, typify canine atopic skin. Barrier defects in the statum corneum (decreased lipid lamellae) are characteristic in atopic dogs, and these defects may enhance this absorption of allergens.