Peer-reviewed veterinary case report
Efficacy of oral terbinafine in feline dermatophytosis due to Microsporum canis.
- Journal:
- Journal of feline medicine and surgery
- Year:
- 1999
- Authors:
- Mancianti, F et al.
- Affiliation:
- Dipartimento di Patologia Animale · Italy
- Species:
- cat
Plain-English summary
This study looked at the effectiveness of a medication called terbinafine for treating ringworm in cats, which is caused by a fungus known as Microsporum canis. Fifteen cats with this infection were given terbinafine by mouth once a day for two weeks. Out of the 12 cats that completed the study, 11 of them, or 92%, were completely cured of the infection. The researchers suggest that terbinafine might be a good alternative to another common treatment, griseofulvin, especially if the fungus is resistant to it or if the cat has a bad reaction to that medication. Overall, the treatment with terbinafine worked very well for most of the cats.
Abstract
Microsporum canis is the dermatophyte most commonly responsible for ringworm in cats. The purpose of this paper was to evaluate the in vivo efficacy of oral terbinafine (Lamisil; Sandoz) in the treatment of feline ringworm caused by M canis, and to consider this drug as an alternative to griseofulvin or imidazoles. Fifteen cats infected with M canis were treated orally once daily with 30 mg/kg of terbinafine over a 2-week period. All treated animals were checked for dermatophytes on the last day of treatment, a month later and 3 months after the last administration of the drug. Only 12 cats could be used in the whole trial and 11 of these (92%) showed a complete cure. Terbinafine could be an effective alternative to griseofulvin when fungal resistance or idiosyncrasic intolerance are shown and, compared with griseofulvin, could give a faster rate of cure and less relapses.
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Search related cases →Original publication: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/11919014/