recurrent infections

[JODIEBELL]

Our yellow lab has had on going infections for months. They started between her toes, then on her face and her stomach and back. Each time the vet put her on an antibiotic. She has been on antibiotics but is still getting new sores. These are open, bloody sores. We changed her diet in May; but that has made no difference - no corn, soy, wheat, etc.

Does anyone have any experience with these sores? Our vet seems unable to cure them.

Thank you for any assistance.

[k9diabetes]

Re: recurrent infections

Hi Jodie,

There are quite a few skin disorders in which the bacterial infection the antibiotic is treating is only secondary - the skin is inflamed and moist, which makes it very inviting for bacteria. So you may get rid of the bacteria each time you give the antibiotic but not actually tackle the problem causing the inflamed skin.

Our dog had two episodes of what I believe was an auto-immune attack on his skin. He got oval to round ulcerations, one year between his toes after a tick bite there and the second time around his eyelides. Poor guy had nasty crusting lesions all around both eyes. We repeatedly treated with antibiotics, which made the condition less intense but did not get rid of it.

We were working with a dermatologist, who could have diagnosed the condition better if we had done a skin biopsy of the lesions. But that required putting him under anesthesia and taking out a big chunk of skin in a delicate area so we decided not to go that route.

We tried, in series, just antibiotics, anti-histamines internally, steroid ointment... I think I'm forgetting one...

In the end, what worked for him was an immune-suppressing drug, cyclosporine, applied as an ophthalmic ointment (since it was so close to his eyes) on the ulcerations. They disappeared immediately with the Tacrolimus!

It was something we had been hesitating to try because Chris had a lot of eye problems and his ophthalmologist was worried about suppressing the immune system around his eyes. But it was the cure for Chris.

So...

There are a few possibilities.

Auto-immune disorders can cause a lot of problems with the skin, creating pemphigus and, I believe, unnamed disorders. Our dog's problems were all at the mucocutaneous junction - where mucous membranes meet skin. Diabetes is thought to be an auto-immune disorder in dogs so it's not unusual for a diabetic dog to have other auto-immune problems.

The other big category of skin problems is endocrine disorders, which diabetes also falls into. Thyroid problems and Cushing's disease are frequent causes of chronic skin problems.

So if it hasn't been done, a thorough blood panel would be helpful.

Do you have access to a dermatologist? That might be a worthwhile route to take to see if s/he has more to offer in terms of a diagnosis and treatment.

You can also have allergy testing done.

It would be good, too, to culture some of the infected stuff from the sores and make sure the antibiotics that are being used are actually effective.

If you don't have a dermatologist... or even if you do, actually... I'd consult with an internal medicine specialist if you can. Ask your vet for a referral. Give the IMS a thorough history of how long this has been going on and the lack of improvement and let him/her know that you want to identify and treat the cause. And evaluate perhaps for something like Cushing's disease or a thyroid problem.

Hope that helps...

Natalie