Assessment of the Feasibility of Bioresonance Technology for Diagnosing Feline Infectious Peritonitis (FIP) in Cats

Abstract

<p style="text-align: left;"><strong>Background and Objective:</strong> Feline Infectious Peritonitis (FIP) is one of the most lethal and complex viral diseases in cats, resulting from a mutation of Feline Coronavirus (FCoV). This disease is particularly prevalent in young cats and in group-housing environments such as catteries and shelters. Diagnosis of FIP has long remained challenging due to the wide variability of clinical signs and the absence of a definitive diagnostic method. Conventional approaches, such as polymerase chain reaction (PCR), despite their advantages, suffer from limitations including relatively low sensitivity and the potential for false-negative results. In recent years, novel techniques such as bioresonance, based on the detection and analysis of electromagnetic waves emitted by cells and pathogens, have gained attention. Nevertheless, the application of this method in diagnosing viral diseases in veterinary medicine, particularly FIP, has not yet been systematically evaluated. This study was therefore designed to assess the diagnostic performance of a specific frequency-modulated bioresonance technique (SMF) in comparison with standard PCR for detecting FCoV infection in cats clinically suspected of having FIP.</p> <p style="text-align: left;"><strong>Materials and Methods:</strong> This descriptive-analytical study was conducted between 2020 and 2022 at the Central Veterinary Laboratory in Tehran, Iran. A total of 30 cats (19 males and 11 females), aged 2 to 24 months and presenting with clinical signs suggestive of FIP including fever, anorexia, jaundice, ocular inflammation, abdominal distension, and neurological abnormalities, were enrolled. Approximately 2 mL of blood was collected from the cephalic vein of each cat. All samples were subjected to two diagnostic methods: (1) molecular RT-PCR targeting the highly conserved regions of the FCoV M gene and the leader sequence of the viral genome; and (2) bioresonance analysis using the MINI-EXPERT-DT device and IMIDIS-EXPERT software, employing a specific frequency of 793.562 Hz and an amplitude of 12 volts. To evaluate the accuracy of both methods, a composite &ldquo;gold standard&rdquo; (defined as the combined results of PCR and bioresonance) was used. Statistical analyses, including chi-square tests, Cohen&rsquo;s kappa coefficient, logistic regression modeling, and receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve analysis, were performed using SPSS v27 and GraphPad Prism v9.4 software.</p> <p style="text-align: left;"><strong>Findings:</strong> The results demonstrated that the bioresonance method significantly outperformed PCR in diagnostic performance. The sensitivity of bioresonance was 100%, compared to only 70.6% for PCR, indicating that bioresonance correctly identified all true-positive cases. Specificity was also higher for bioresonance (81.8%) than for PCR (72.7%). The kappa agreement coefficient between bioresonance and the gold standard was 0.845, reflecting excellent agreement, whereas PCR showed only moderate agreement (kappa= 0.420). The area under the ROC curve (AUC) further confirmed the superior diagnostic accuracy of bioresonance (AUC= 0.909) compared to PCR (AUC= 0.717). Additionally, the overall diagnostic accuracy of bioresonance was 92.9%, significantly higher than the 71.4% recorded for PCR.</p> <p style="text-align: left;"><strong>Conclusion:</strong> This study demonstrates that the bioresonance method, with its high sensitivity and accuracy, can serve as a reliable, rapid, and non-invasive diagnostic tool for FIP in clinically suspected cats. Beyond its ability to detect all infected cases, bioresonance significantly reduces false-negative results, thereby enhancing the precision and effectiveness of clinical decision-making by veterinarians. Given its non-invasive nature, relatively low cost, and speed, bioresonance appears to be a promising complementary, or even alternative, approach in veterinary clinical settings, especially where time and resources are limited. To the authors&rsquo; knowledge, this is the first scientific report from Iran, and among the earliest globally, on the application of bioresonance for FIP diagnosis, marking a significant step toward innovative strategies in veterinary viral diagnostics. Future studies with larger sample sizes and diverse clinical scenarios are recommended to further validate these findings and expand the application of this emerging technology to other infectious diseases.</p>