Development and validation of a new standardised data collection tool to aid in the diagnosis of canine skin allergies

Harvey, N. D.; Shaw, S. C.; Blott, S. C.; Vàzquez-Diosdado, J. A.; England, G. C. W.

Abstract

Canine atopic dermatitis (cAD) is a common hereditary clinical syndrome in domestic dogs with no definitive diagnostic tests, which causes marked morbidity and has a high economic impact internationally. We created a novel questionnaire for Labrador (LR) and Golden retriever (GR) owners to evaluate canine skin health with respect to clinical signs of cAD. 4,111 dogs had fully completed questionnaires (2,803 LR; 1,308 GR). ‘Cases’ (793) had a reported veterinary diagnosis of cAD, and ‘controls’ (1652) had no current or past clinical signs of cAD and were aged >3 years. Remaining dogs (1666) were initially categorised as ‘Other’. Simulated annealing was used comparing ‘Cases’ and ‘Others’ to select a novel set of features able to classify a known case. Two feature sets are proposed, one for use on first evaluation and one for dogs with a history of skin problems. A sum for each list when applied to the whole population (including controls) was able to classify ‘Cases’ with a sensitivity of 89% to 94% and specificity of 71% to 69%, respectively, and identify potentially undiagnosed cases. Our findings demonstrate for the first time that owner questionnaire data can be reliably used to aid in the diagnostic process of cAD.

Citation

Harvey, N. D., Shaw, S. C., Blott, S. C., Vàzquez-Diosdado, J. A., & England, G. C. W. (2019). Development and validation of a new standardised data collection tool to aid in the diagnosis of canine skin allergies. Scientific Reports, 9, Article 3039. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-019-39630-3

• Journal Article Type: Article
• Acceptance Date: Jan 22, 2019
• Online Publication Date: Feb 28, 2019
• Publication Date: Feb 28, 2019
• Deposit Date: Feb 28, 2019
• Publicly Available Date: Mar 1, 2019
• Journal: Scientific Reports
• Electronic ISSN: 2045-2322
• Publisher: Nature Publishing Group
• Peer Reviewed: Peer Reviewed
• Volume: 9
• Article Number: 3039
• DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-019-39630-3
• Keywords: Veterinary
• Public URL: https://nottingham-repository.worktribe.com/output/1592253
• Publisher URL: https://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-019-39630-3
• Additional Information: Received: 8 May 2018; Accepted: 22 January 2019; First Online: 28 February 2019; : The authors declare no competing interests.
• Contract Date: Mar 1, 2019