The absence of standardized culture media for antifungal susceptibility testing (AFST) of animal dermatophytes leads to considerable challenges in result interpretation and treatment selection. This study aimed to compare the performance of Mueller-Hinton Agar (MHA) and Dermasel Agar (DA) for AFST of feline dermatophytes using disc diffusion and E-test methodologies. Skin and hair samples were collected from cats exhibiting clinical signs of dermatophytosis, including alopecia, erythema, and pruritus. A total of 28 dermatophyte isolates were identified by conventional techniques, of which 26 were identified as Microsporum (M.) canis, and 2 as Nannizzia (N.) gypsea. Antifungal susceptibility to itraconazole, fluconazole, ketoconazole, clotrimazole, posaconazole, and voriconazole was determined using the disc diffusion method on both media. In addition, the E-test method was used to determine the minimum inhibitory concentrations of these antifungal agents. The performance of the media was evaluated according to ISO 11133 standards. Comparison of susceptibility profiles showed that while both M. canis (n=26) and N. gypsea (n=2) were highly susceptible to posaconazole and voriconazole, their efficacy diverged for other agents: itraconazole was effective against M. canis, whereas N. gypsea was more susceptible to clotrimazole. High productivity rates and consistent colony morphology were observed in MHA. Since MHA is a non-selective and nutritionally balanced medium for the AFST of M. canis and N. gypsea, it is preferred over DA. This study provides crucial data to inform reproducible, evidence-based antifungal therapy and to monitor trends in resistance.
ÖNEL et al. (Thu,) studied this question.
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