Research Communications of the 24th ECVIM-CA Congress

The sera for virus neutralization were provided by Merial, France. defined herein as presence of sneezing, nasal-and/or ocular discharge, conjunctivitis and/or keratitis), but also oral cavity lesions, chronic stomatitis, limping syndrome and, rarely, virulent systemic disease. The aims of the present study were to compare cats suspected of FCV (FCV-SC) based on clinical symptoms and healthy controls (controls) and to investigate potential risk and protective factors, such as co-infection with feline herpesvirus-1 (FHV-1), Mycoplasma felis, Chlamydophila felis, Bordetella bronchiseptica and feline retroviruses, vaccination, gender, age, breed, housing and corticosteroid and antibiotic treatment. Oropharyngeal, nasal and conjunctival swabs from 200 FCV-SC and 100 controls were collected into transport medium, processed within 96 hours after collection and analyzed for FCV by virus isolation and for all tested pathogens using molecular assays. The samples were collected by randomly selected veterinary practices in 20 different areas of Switzerland (10 FCV-SC and 5 controls/ area). To record clinical data, retroviral status and vaccination history of the cats, a questionnaire was filled out by the private veterinarian. The seven tested pathogens were found in the investigated population. The prevalence (FCV-SC vs. controls) was: FCV 45% vs. 8%; FHV-1 20% vs. 9%, C. felis 8% vs. 1%, B. bronchiseptica 4% vs. 2%, M. felis 48% vs. 31%, Feline leukemia virus 2% vs. 1% and Feline immunodeficiency virus 2% vs. 1%. FCV-SC were positive for FCV significantly more often compared with controls (OR 9.2) and shed more FCV. Co-infections with up to four pathogens were detected; FCV-SC were significantly more frequently co-infected (40%) compared with controls (14%). Gingivostomatitis and oral ulceration but not URTD were highly associated with FCV infection. In contrast, C. felis was associated with URTD; FHV-1 was associated with nasal and ocular discharge and M. felis with conjunctivitis and ocular discharge. Risk factors for FCV infection were housing in groups (especially ≥4 cats), an intact gender, Maine Coon breed and corticosteroid therapy. FCV-positive cats with gingivostomatitis were older and more commonly vaccinated than FCV-positive cats without gingivostomatitis. Moreover they shed more FCV than cats with URTD. Vaccination and primary immunization defined as two vaccinations 2-6 weeks apart with the same vaccine brand were protective factors against FCV but not FHV-1 infection. Vaccination was associated with a decreased incidence of URTD in FCV-infected cats (OR 0.3). Further analyses will investigate cross-neutralization patterns of the prevailing FCV isolates.