Disease Description: An infection of the facial skin caused by unusual or excessive skin folds (seen in dogs such as the Pekingese or Chinese shar pei).

Inherit Mode: Fold dermatitis is directly related to skin folding or wrinkling in a particular breed. The wrinkling trait is considered to be autosomal dominant.

Disease Symptom: The condition can cause your dog mild to significantdiscomfort anditching (depending on whether the area becomes infected). Infection islikely to recur.

Disease Cause: -

Disease Diagnose: The condition is readily diagnosed based on reddened,moist areas infolds of skin.

Treat Method: This condition can generally be managedsatisfactorily. Yourveterinarian will recommend a cleansing shampoo for you to useregularly to combatinfection which, when it does occur, will require antibiotictreatment. If your dog develops a chronic orfrequently-recurring foldpyoderma, despite treatment, your veterinarian will likely discusswith you the option ofsurgically removing the fold which should clear up the problempermanently.

Breeder Advice: Fold dermatitis with associated pyoderma is one ofthe conditionsthat results from selection by breeders and a demand from the publicfor particularfeatures, in this case skin wrinkling, heavy facial folds, or a"corkscrew"tail. These disorders are directly related to the conformation orstandards for the breed.Although these conditions have in many cases become so common thatthey are accepted asnormal for the breed, they can still cause serious physical problemsand discomfort forthe dog. This condition can be minimized by choosing dogsfor breeding withfew or no wrinkles, rather than those with pronounced folds orwrinkling. Breed clubs canencourage this, while at the same time educating potential owners onthe reasons via breedpublications/websites.

Disease Description Source: Link