Prednisolone therapy for atopic dermatitis is less effective in dogs with lower pretreatment serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D concentrations

• Published in: Veterinary dermatology 2012-04, Vol.23 (2), p.125-e28
• Main Authors: Kovalik, Marcel, Thoday, Keith L., Berry, Jacqueline, van den Broek, Adri H. M., Mellanby, Richard J.
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Animals; Anti-Inflammatory Agents - therapeutic use; Cohort Studies; Dermatitis, Atopic - drug therapy; Dermatitis, Atopic - veterinary; Dog Diseases - blood; Dog Diseases - drug therapy; Dogs; Prednisolone - therapeutic use; Vitamin D - analogs & derivatives; Vitamin D - blood
• ISSN: 0959-4493; 1365-3164
• DOI: 10.1111/j.1365-3164.2011.01022.x

Serum 25‐hydroxyvitamin D [25(OH)D] concentrations were measured in 20 dogs with atopic dermatitis prior to treatment with a standard therapeutic dosage of prednisolone (0.93–1.06 mg/kg) every other day for 5 weeks after 7 days of treatment with the same dosage once daily. The severity of their physical signs was scored before and 6 weeks after prednisolone treatment by the canine atopic dermatitis extent and severity index version 3 (CADESI‐03) and the Edinburgh Pruritus Scale (EPS). The 20 dogs with atopic dermatitis that were treated with prednisolone did not have significantly lower serum concentrations of 25(OH)D than a group of 36 healthy dogs, and the physical severity of the atopic dermatitis was not correlated to pretreatment serum 25(OH)D concentrations. However, dogs which had a marked improvement of their physical signs, defined by a post‐treatment EPS score of 0 and/or an 85% reduction in CADESI‐03 score, had significantly higher pretreatment serum 25(OH)D concentrations than dogs with a suboptimal response (P = 0.003 and P = 0.03, respectively). Serum 25(OH)D concentrations were also measured in a previously published cohort of atopic dogs that were treated with ciclosporin. This cohort of dogs was recruited in a similar time frame to the prednisolone‐treated dogs, and all samples were handled in the same way. In contrast to the prednisolone‐treated dogs, there was no significant difference in 25(OH)D concentrations in dogs that responded optimally to ciclosporin compared with suboptimal responders. Additional studies are required to establish whether vitamin D has a synergistic therapeutic effect with prednisolone in dogs with atopic dermatitis. Re´sume´ Les concentrations de 25(OH)D sérique ont été mesurées chez 20 chiens atopiques avant un traitement à une dose standard thérapeutique de prednisolone (0.93–1.06 mg/kg) un jour sur deux pendant 5 semaines après 7 jours de traitement à la même dose une fois par jour. La sévérité de leurs signes cliniques a été noté avant et 6 semaines après le traitement à la prednisolone par le CADESI‐3 (canine atopic dermatitis extent and severity index version 3) et l’EPS (Edinburgh Pruritus Scale). Les 20 chiens atopiques traités à la prednisolone n’ont pas eu de concentrations significativement plus basses de 25(OH)D qu’un groupe de 36 chiens sains et la sévérité clinique de la dermatite atopique n’était pas corrélée aux concentrations de prétraitement de 25(OH)D sériques. Cependant, les chiens ayant une