Case 5: Bacterial Pyoderma

HISTORY: A 15-year-old Samoyed dog had hair loss, erythema and crusting lesions over the muzzle.

Figure 1: Severe, chronic dermatitis with intracorneal pustules H and E. 400 X magnification

Figure 2: Crust containing bacterial cocci (blue dots). H and E 1000 X magnification

Diagnosis: Bacterial pyoderma with bacterial cocci.

Bacterial pyoderma is present. It is very important in dermatology cases to include surface crusts in your biopsy, as this can often contain infectious agents or important pathological changes to help with the diagnosis. These bacteria are most likely Staphylococcal spp.