2020 AAFP Feline Retrovirus Testing and Management Guidelines

Abstract

Clinical importance: Feline leukemia virus (FeLV) and feline immunodeficiency virus (FIV) infections are found in cats worldwide. Both infections are associated with a variety of clinical signs and can impact quality of life and longevity. Scope: This document is an update of the 2008 American Association of Feline Practitioners' feline retrovirus management guidelines and represents current knowledge on pathogenesis, diagnosis, prevention and treatment of retrovirus infections in cats. Testing and interpretation: Although vaccines are available for FeLV in many countries and for FIV in some countries, identification of infected cats remains an important factor for preventing new infections. The retrovirus status of every cat at risk of infection should be known. Cats should be tested as soon as possible after they are acquired, following exposure to an infected cat or a cat of unknown infection status, prior to vaccination against FeLV or FIV, and whenever clinical illness occurs. It might not be possible to determine a cat's infection status based on testing at a single point in time; repeat testing using different methods could be required. Although FeLV and FIV infections can be associated with clinical disease, some infected cats, especially those infected with FIV, can live for many years with good quality of life. Management of infected cats:There is a paucity of data evaluating treatments for infected cats, especially antiretroviral and immunomodulatory drugs. Management of infected cats is focused on effective preventive healthcare strategies, and prompt identification and treatment of illness, as well as limiting the spread of infection.

Hematological and biochemical aspects of cats naturally infected with feline immunodeficiency virus and feline leukemia

“…Changes in the total leukocyte count are related to the reduction in the number of circulating neutrophils, mainly in the acute phase of infections and later in the immunosuppression phase, due to insufficient myelopoiesis (Shelton et al, 1990;Costa et al, 2017;Turinelli & Gavazza, 2018). Lymphopenia is related to the onset of immunosuppression, with a decrease in the number of CD4 and CD8 cells (Hofmann-Lehmann et al, 1997;Novo et al, 2016;Little et al, 2020 Regarding biochemical changes, we observed a tendency towards hyperproteinemia in FIV positive cats. Hartmann (2011) and Liem et al (2013) reported an increase in plasma globulins in cats as a result of the polyclonal expansion of B lymphocytes in response to FIV.…”

“…The feline immunodeficiency virus (FIV) and feline leukemia virus (FeLV) are two retroviruses that promote a progressive imbalance in the metabolism and immune system of the affected animals (Hosie et al, 2009;Hartmann, 2011;Teixeira et al 2019). Diagnosis of FIV/FeLV infections is performed by associating the clinical signs presented by the cats to complementary laboratory tests (Teixeira et al, 2007;Little et al, 2020). Diagnosis is necessary for the practice of preventive measures such as early vaccination and the initiation of necessary care in the case of positive animals (Levy et al, 2008;Westman et al, 2016).…”

Clinical and Hematological Follow-Up of Long-Term Oral Therapy with Type-I Interferon in Cats Naturally Infected with Feline Leukemia Virus or Feline Immunodeficiency Virus

“…Feline leukemia and feline immunodeficiency viruses (FeLV and FIV, respectively) are retroviruses that affect domestic cats. Feline leukemia is a severe disease with several outcomes associated mainly with the immune response of the cat [1][2][3]. Disease outcomes range from "abortive infection" (a strong immune response eliminates the virus at the initial stages of the infection) to "regressive infection" (the virus remains integrated in the haemopoietic stem cells in the bone marrow) and "progressive infection" (when the virus is constantly expressed, associated to persistent viremia and progression of the FeLV infection to related diseases) [4,5].…”

2020 AAHA/AAFP Feline Vaccination Guidelines

“…Every effort should be made to ensure that cats are healthy before vaccination. However, concurrent illness (including retroviral infections) does not necessarily preclude vaccination 34. The 2020 AAFP Feline Retrovirus Testing and Management Guidelines state that vaccines should not be avoided in cats with retroviral infection because they can develop more severe clinical disease related to FPV and upper respiratory tract infections after natural exposure compared with un infected cats 34.…”