Peer-reviewed veterinary case report
Oral health problems linked to FIV and FeLV in cats
By Kornya, Matthew R et al.·Published in Journal of the American Veterinary Medical Association·2014·Department of Pathobiology, Canada·View original on PubMed →
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Original publication title: Association between oral health status and retrovirus test results in cats.
- Species:
- cat
Plain-English summary
A study involving over 5,000 cats found that those with gum disease or other oral health issues were more likely to test positive for FIV (feline immunodeficiency virus) and FeLV (feline leukemia virus). Specifically, cats with stomatitis, a painful inflammation of the mouth, had the highest risk of being FIV positive. The research suggests that if your cat has oral health problems, it’s important to have them tested for these viruses, as managing their oral health could be crucial for their overall well-being.
People also search for: cat gum disease FIV test · stomatitis in cats treatment · feline leukemia virus symptoms
Abstract
OBJECTIVE: To determine associations between oral health status and seropositivity for FIV or FeLV in cats. DESIGN: Cross-sectional survey. ANIMALS: 5,179 cats. PROCEDURES: Veterinarians at veterinary clinics and animal shelters completed online training on oral conditions in cats and then scored oral health status of cats with no known history of vaccination against FIV. Age, sex, and results of an ELISA for retroviruses were recorded. Results were analyzed by means of standard logistic regression with binary outcome. RESULTS: Of 5,179 cats, 237 (4.6%) and 186 (3.6%) were seropositive for FIV and FeLV, respectively, and of these, 12 (0.2%) were seropositive for FIV and FeLV. Of all 5,179 cats, 1,073 (20.7%) had gingivitis, 576 (11.1%) had periodontitis, 203 (3.9%) had stomatitis, and 252 (4.9%) had other oral conditions (overall oral disease prevalence, 2,104/5,179 [40.6%]). Across all age categories, inflammatory oral disease was associated with a significantly higher risk of a positive test result for FIV, compared with the seropositivity risk associated with other oral diseases or no oral disease. Stomatitis was most highly associated with risk of FIV seropositivity. Cats with any oral inflammatory disease were more likely than orally healthy cats to have a positive test result for FeLV. Increasing age was associated with a higher prevalence of oral disease in retrovirus-seronegative cats. CONCLUSIONS AND CLINICAL RELEVANCE: Inflammatory oral disease was associated with an increased risk of seropositivity for retroviruses in naturally infected cats. Therefore, retroviral status of cats with oral inflammatory disease should be determined and appropriate management initiated.
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Search related cases →Original publication on PubMed: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/25285933/