An outbreak of ringworm caused by Trichophyton verrucosum in a group of calves in Vom, Nigeria

Abstract

An outbreak of ringworm in young calves is reported from Vom in Nigeria. Twelve out of fourteen calves were observed to have skin lesions consistent with dermatophytosis. Lesions were seen mostly around the eyes and neck. Skin scrapings were collected from the affected areas and processed for mycology. Trichophyton verrucosum was isolated from all the affected calves. This study has shown that T. verrucosum can be a problem to watch for in calves in this particular environment, both as a zoonosis and economic importance as a result of damage to hides and skin. The need to study the prevalence of the disease among the cattle population in the state and country with a view to instituting preventive and control measures was emphasized.

Dermatophytosis in an adult cattle due to Trichophyton verrucosum

“…In the present investigation, the clinical diagnosis was confirmed by direct microscopy of dermatophyte in cutaneous lesions and by cultural isolation of T. verrucosum on mycological media. This observation is in conformity with the findings of other investigators [5,8,10]. Dermatophytosis is mainly encountered in calves [8,10,12].…”

“…This observation is in conformity with the findings of other investigators [5,8,10]. Dermatophytosis is mainly encountered in calves [8,10,12]. However, the current study indicated that adult animal can also be affected with T.verrucosum.…”

“…Due to ethical restrictions, the scrapings from the head lesions of the child were not obtained for mycological confirmation. It is pertinent to mention that many cases of direct transmission of T. verrucosum from infected animals to humans are documented in the literature [3,5,8,10,20,[27][28][29][30]. As all animal dermatophytes are highly communicable to human beings, necessary precautions must be exercised to prevent the transmission of infection.…”

“…The disease in cattle is primarily caused by T. verrucosum but occasionally other dermatophytes such as T. mentagrohytes, Microsporum canis, and M. gypseum are also isolated from dermatological disorders of bovine [1,3,6,10,12,20]. Dermatophytosis is reported from over 145 countries of the world including India [3,9,10,21,22]. The global prevalence of dermatophytosis in humans is estimated about 20% [23].…”

“…Transmission of infection can occur through direct contact with infected patients or indirect contact with contaminated fomites [8]. Disease can occur in sporadic as well as in epidemic forms [3,9,10]. Some of the dermatophytes are isolated from the soil [11] and hence, infection can also be acquired from such saprobic reservoirs [3].…”