Dermatologic aspects of tick bites and tick-transmitted diseases

Biology and Diseases of Dogs

Historically, the dog played an important role as a laboratory animal in biomedical research. Although numbers are declining, the use of dogs continues to be common in pharmacokinetics and cardiovascular studies. The normal biology of the dog as both a laboratory and a companion animal has been well studied and reference values are presented here as a clinical and experimental resource. This provides the necessary background to discuss the spontaneous diseases, including infectious and neoplastic conditions, prevalent in purpose bred as well as random source dogs used in biomedical research. In addition, diseases and conditions that arise secondary to the housing and experimental manipulation of dogs is discussed with emphasis on treatment and prevention.

Comparison of dragging and sweeping methods for collecting ticks and determining their seasonal distributions for various habitats, Gyeonggi Province, Republic of Korea

As part of the 65th Medical Brigade tick-borne disease surveillance program to determine the abundance, geographical and seasonal distributions, and tick-borne pathogens present in the Republic of Korea, dragging and sweeping methods were compared to determine their efficiency for collecting ticks in grass and deciduous, conifer, and mixed forest habitats at military training sites and privately owned lands in northern Gyeonggi Province near the demilitarized zone from April-October, 2004-2005. Three species of Ixodid ticks, Haemaphysalis longicornis, Haemaphysalis flava, and Ixodes nipponensis, were collected. Overall, H. longicornis adults and nymphs were most frequently collected from grass and deciduous forest habitats, accounting for 98.2 and 66.2%, respectively, of all ticks collected. H. flava adults and nymphs were most frequently collected from conifer and mixed forests, accounting for 81.6, and 77.8%, respectively, of all ticks collected. I. nipponensis adults and nymphs accounted for 9.3% of all ticks collected from mixed forests, were less commonly collected from deciduous (4.1%) and conifer (4.1%) forests, and infrequently collected from grass habitats (0.9%). Overall, there were no significant differences between dragging and sweeping methods for the three species when the areas sampled were similar (sweeping = 2 x the area over the same transect). Adults and nymphs of H. longicornis were most commonly collected from April-August, while those of H. flava and I. nipponensis were most commonly collected during April-July and again during October. Larvae of all three species were most frequently observed from July-September.

Otobius megnini Infestation in Three Dogs

Résumé- Trois cas d'infestation par Otobius megnini sont décrits. Le motif de consultation chez les deux chiens ne recevant par de corticoïdes était des secousses de la tête. L'éxérèse des tiques chez deux chiens et l'utilisation d'une préparation otologique à base de thiabendazole-dexaméthasone-néomycine chez le troisième, ont permis un contrôle de l'infestation. [White, S. D., Scott, K. V., Cheney, J. M. Otobius megnini infestation in three dogs (Infestation de trois chiens par Otobius megnini). Resumen- Describimos tres casos de infestación por Otobius megnini en la especie canina. Los dos perros que no recibian tratamiento con corticoesteroides sacudian la cabeza. La infestación se resolvió quitando los piojos en dos casos y mediante el uso de una preparatión ótica con tiabendazol, dexametasona y neomicina, en el tercero. [Otobius megnini infestation in three dogs (Infestación por Otobius megnini en tres perros). Abstract- Three cases of Otobius megnini infestation in dogs are described. Head-shaking was the presenting complaint in the two dogs not receiving systemic corticosteroids. Removal of the ticks in two dogs, and the usage of a thiabendazole-dexamethasone-neomycin otic preparation in the third, resulted in resolution of the infestation.