Peer-reviewed veterinary case report
Immunotherapy to reduce inflammation in dogs with atopic dermatitis
By Nagata, Masahiko et al.·Published in Veterinary dermatology·2025·ASC, Japan·View original on PubMed →
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Original publication title: Immunotherapy using pullulan-conjugated Der f 2 allergen in canine atopic dermatitis: An anti-inflammatory agent-sparing approach.
- Species:
- dog
Plain-English summary
A group of 21 dogs with atopic dermatitis (a skin allergy) received a new type of immunotherapy using a pullulan-conjugated allergen for one year after showing mild symptoms while on anti-inflammatory medications. Over time, the dogs showed significant improvement, with many needing less medication and experiencing fewer symptoms. By the end of the study, more than half of the dogs had excellent or good results, indicating that this treatment could effectively help manage their skin allergies.
People also search for: dog skin allergy treatment · atopic dermatitis in dogs · immunotherapy for dog allergies
Abstract
BACKGROUND: Allergen immunotherapy is used as aetiological treatment for canine atopic dermatitis (cAD). OBJECTIVE: To assess the anti-inflammatory agent-sparing effect over 1 year of immunotherapy using pullulan-conjugated recombinant Der f 2 (rDf2-P). ANIMALS: Twenty-one privately owned dogs with cAD. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Dogs with mild clinical signs after ≥4 weeks of anti-inflammatory drug treatment received rDf2-P immunotherapy for 1 year. A monthly medication score (MS) was calculated, and clinical signs were assessed using Canine Atopic Dermatitis Extent and Severity Index (CADESI)-04, cAD Eczema Area and Severity for Shiba Inu and pruritus scores. Serum thymus and activation-regulated chemokine (TARC)/C-C Motif Chemokine Ligand-17 (CCL17) concentrations were assessed at the initial and final doses during the 6-week induction phase and every 3 months for 1 year thereafter in 16 cases. RESULTS: The mean MS decreased significantly by 43.0% (p = 0.022), 60.9% (p = 0.003), 70.0% (p = 0.0004), 58.7% (p = 0.0004) and 49.3% (p = 0.029) at 2.5, 4.5, 7.5, 10.5 and 13.5 months, respectively. Drug-sparing effects, assessed with MS and adjusted by clinical scores were rated as excellent for 12 (57.1%) and 11 (52.4%) dogs, good for 3 (14.3%) and 1 (4.8%) dogs, fair for 0 and 3 (14.3%) dogs, and poor for 6 (28.6%) and 5 (23.8%) dogs at 4.5 and 13.5 months, respectively. The serum TARC/CCL17 concentrations were significantly lower in the samples with lower CADESI-04 scores (<17) than in those with higher CADESI-04 scores (>17) (p = 0.0002). CONCLUSIONS AND CLINICAL RELEVANCE: Der f 2-P immunotherapy can lead to a rapid reduction in anti-inflammatory drug use and serve as an effective proactive therapy for cAD.
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Search related cases →Original publication on PubMed: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/39686904/