Clinical signs and diagnosis of canine atopic dermatitis

Canine Atopic Dermatitis (CAD) is the most frequent canine dermatosis. It has been defi ned by the International Task Force on Canine Atopic Dermatitis ( ITFCAD) as a “genetically predisposed infl ammatory and pruritic allergic skin disease with characteristic clinical features associated with IgE antibodies most commonly directed against environmental allergens”[1]. A ITFCAD-revised nomenclature for veterinary allergy also takes into account dogs with clinical signs of atopic dermatitis but no demonstrable allergen-specifi c IgE (Intradermal tests and/or serology): the term atopic-like dermatitis (ALD) was coined to described this group of dogs[1]. SUMMARY