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[Dermatophyte colonization on guinea pigs (Cavia porcellus) kept in pet stores. First report from Santiago, Chile]
Pamela Thomson1, Pamela Monsalves1, Liliana Maier1
1Unidad de Microbiología, Facultad de Medicina Veterinaria, Universidad Santo Tomás, Santiago, Chile.
Background:
Dermatophytes are pathogenic fungi that can be present in the flora of mammals, such as dogs, cats and rodents, which can be a source and transmission vehicle to other hosts, including humans. In Chile, there is a steady increase of acquiring guinea pigs (Cavia porcellus) as pets, with no local studies on their colonization by dermatophytes.
Objective:
To determine the presence of dermatophytes on clinically healthy guinea pigs, kept in pet stores in Santiago, Chile.
Methods:
A total of 52 clinically healthy animals were studied using the method by Mariat and Tapia (1966). The specimen culture and identification of the dermatophytes were performed using classical mycological procedures.
Results:
Four guinea pigs (7.7%) out of 52 were colonized by dermatophytes, and were identified as Trichophyton mentagrophytes (3 cases) and Trichophyton verrucosum (one case).
Conclusion:
This study shows, for the first time in Chile, that guinea pigs can be colonized by dermatophytes, which should alert administrators of pet stores, veterinarians and physicians, to keep this in mind when purchasing or looking after this type of pet in a veterinary office.
