Outcome of cats referred to a specialized adoption program for feline leukemia virus-positive cats

Lockhart, Heather L; Levy, Julie; Amirian, E. Susan; Hamman, Natascha T.; Frenden, Monica K.

doi:10.1177/1098612x20913359

Cited by 4 publications

(5 citation statements)

References 13 publications

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“…A previous study indicated such a high national demand among shelters and rescue groups for placement options for their FeLV and FIV positive cats that hundreds of cats were sent each year from across the county to a specialized adoption program in Austin, Texas ( 8 ). Of 801 cats referred to the FeLV adoption program over 2 years, 19% were deemed not to be infected upon further testing, illustrating the risk of deciding a cat's fate based on a single test.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Increasingly, shelter programs aim to save all animals that are not suffering or dangerous to society, even if their long-term outcome is uncertain ( 7 ). As a result, some shelters have developed adoption programs for FeLV and FIV positive cats ( 1 , 3 , 8 ). Little is known about the current status of retroviral management in animal shelters, particularly in regions burdened by chronic pet overpopulation and high animal shelter admissions, such as the southern United States.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Animal shelter management of feline leukemia virus and feline immunodeficiency virus infections in cats

Dezubiria

Amirian²,

Spera

et al. 2023

Front. Vet. Sci.

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Approximately 5% of cats in animal shelters in the United States test positive for either feline leukemia virus (FeLV) or feline immunodeficiency virus (FIV), which translates to more than 100,000 positive cats managed by shelters each year. Little is known about the current status of retroviral management in animal shelters, particularly in regions burdened by chronic pet overpopulation and high shelter admissions, such as the southern United States. The purpose of this study was to describe feline retroviral management in Florida shelters. Shelters were surveyed on practices including selection of cats for testing, diagnostic techniques, and outcome options for cats with positive test results. Responses were received from 139 of 153 animal shelters known to admit cats, including 55 municipal shelters (40%), 70 private shelters (50%), and 14 private shelters with municipal contracts (10%). A total of 115 shelters (83%) performed at least some testing, most using combination point-of-care devices for simultaneous FeLV antigen and FIV antibody screening. Of shelters that performed any testing, 56 (49%) tested all cats for FeLV and 52 (45%) tested all cats for both FeLV and FIV. The most common reason for testing was screening adoptable cats (108 shelters; 94%) and cats available for transfer to other organizations (78; 68%). Testing cats in trap-neuter-return/return-to-field programs was least common (21; 18%). Most common outcome options for positive cats included adoption (74; 64%), transfer (62; 54%), and euthanasia (49; 43%). Euthanasia following a positive test result was more common for cats with FeLV (49; 43%) than for cats with FIV (29; 25%) and was more common in municipal shelters, rural shelters, shelters taking in <500 cats a year, and shelters with overall live outcome rates for cats <70%. Although Florida shelter compliance with national guidelines for identification and management of FeLV and FIV positive cats was variable, most had live outcome options for at least some of their cats with positive test results. Increased access to training and practical programmatic tools may help more shelters implement cost-effective testing protocols, reduce risk for transmission to other cats, and support the best outcomes for this vulnerable population of cats.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Animal shelter management of feline leukemia virus and feline immunodeficiency virus infections in cats

Dezubiria

Amirian²,

Spera

et al. 2023

Front. Vet. Sci.

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“…The study was conducted in collaboration with a large shelter offering an FeLV adoption program (Austin Pets Alive!, Austin, TX, USA) [ 28 ] and approved by the Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee (IACUC) aof the University of Florida, Maddie’s Shelter Medicine Program (protocol 201909584, 10 July 2016). Cats were individually screened at the time of shelter admission for the presence of p27 antigen using EDTA-anticoagulated whole blood with a point-of-care (POC) ELISA test (SNAP ® FIV/FeLV Combo Test, IDEXX Laboratories, Inc., Westbrook, ME, USA).…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Feline Leukemia Virus p27 Antigen Concentration and Proviral DNA Load Are Associated with Survival in Naturally Infected Cats

Beall

Buch

Clark

et al. 2021

Viruses

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Longitudinal studies of cats naturally infected with feline leukemia virus (FeLV) are important for understanding disease outcomes. Levels of p27 antigen and copy numbers of proviral DNA have been associated with FeLV-infection courses. The purpose of this prospective study was to establish cutoff values for p27 antigen concentration and proviral DNA load that distinguished high positive from low positive groups of cats and to evaluate an association with survival. At enrollment, 254 cats were tested by point-of-care and microtiter plate enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays (ELISAs) for p27 antigen and real-time polymerase chain reaction (PCR) for proviral DNA. The 127 positive cats were retested monthly for six months and monitored for survival over the four-year study. A receiver operating characteristic-based analysis of samples with concordant or discordant qualitative results for p27 antigen and proviral DNA was used to establish cutoff values, and when applied to test results at enrollment for classifying cats as high positive or low positive, a significant difference in survival was observed. High positive cats had a median survival of 1.37 years (95% CI 0.83–2.02) from time of enrollment, while most low positive cats were still alive (93.1% survival). Quantitative results for p27 antigen concentration and proviral DNA load were highly correlated with survival times in FeLV-infected cats.

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“…FeLV-positive cats may have a reasonable longterm prognosis and can often be successfully rehomed. 33 It is also important that a veterinarian be able to differentiate a cat that is progressively infected and has clinical signs caused by FeLV from one that is regressively infected but has an unrelated concurrent condition, since prognosis and therapy may differ. This case series describes 21 cats with hematologic disease and a positive FeLV serum p27 LFI/ELISA but negative PCR test result and, in a subset of cases, a negative subsequent LFI/ELISA test result.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…FeLV-positive cats may have a reasonable long-term prognosis and can often be successfully rehomed. 33 It is also important that a veterinarian be able to differentiate a cat that is progressively infected and has clinical signs caused by FeLV from one that is regressively infected but has an unrelated concurrent condition, since prognosis and therapy may differ.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Discordant FeLV p27 immunoassay and PCR test results in 21 cats with hematologic disorders

Kornya

Bienzle

Beeler-Marfisi

2023

Journal of Feline Medicine and Surgery

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Case series summary A total of 1692 medical records from a primary care feline practice and a veterinary referral hospital were evaluated retrospectively to assess discordant feline leukemia virus (FeLV) test results. In total, 73 cats were positive for FeLV using serum in a lateral flow immunoassay (LFI) or laboratory-based ELISA. Of these cats, 21 subsequently tested negative for FeLV proviral DNA by non-quantitative PCR on EDTA whole blood (16/21, 76.2%), bone marrow (4/21, 19%) or both (1/21, 4.7%). The proportional morbidity (an estimate of prevalence in a sample of the total population) for FeLV by LFI/ELISA and PCR assays was 3.1%, consistent with that reported in previous studies for cats in North America. Cats with discordant LFI/ELISA and PCR results had either primary bone marrow disease (18 autoimmune, one neoplastic), a bone marrow insult (hemotrophic mycoplasmosis) or systemic inflammation (pyothorax with a marked neutrophilic leukocytosis). The percentage of cats with a positive LFA/ELISA result and negative PCR assay surviving to discharge was 85.7% (18/21). Of these, 88.9% (16/18) survived 4 months to 6 years. Seven cats (33.3%) were re-tested with LFI or ELISA once primary disease was controlled, and all tested negative. Relevance and novel information These findings indicate that in cats with bone marrow disease that shares features of progressive FeLV infection, positive LFI and ELISA FeLV test results should be followed up with FeLV proviral DNA PCR testing, particularly in populations where disease prevalence is low.

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Outcome of cats referred to a specialized adoption program for feline leukemia virus-positive cats

Cited by 4 publications

References 13 publications

Animal shelter management of feline leukemia virus and feline immunodeficiency virus infections in cats

Animal shelter management of feline leukemia virus and feline immunodeficiency virus infections in cats

Feline Leukemia Virus p27 Antigen Concentration and Proviral DNA Load Are Associated with Survival in Naturally Infected Cats

Discordant FeLV p27 immunoassay and PCR test results in 21 cats with hematologic disorders

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