Peer-reviewed veterinary case report
How long vaccinated cats keep antibodies to three viruses
By Mouzin, Douglas E et al.·Published in Journal of the American Veterinary Medical Association·2004·Veterinary Medicine Biologicals Research and Development, United States·View original on PubMed →
PetCaseFinder translated the abstract of this peer-reviewed paper into plain English so pet owners can read it. We do not publish original research — every detail traces back to the citation above. How we work →
Original publication title: Duration of serologic response to three viral antigens in cats.
- Species:
- cat
Plain-English summary
A group of 272 healthy cats, all over 2 years old, were vaccinated against three viral infections: feline panleukopenia, feline calicivirus, and feline herpesvirus. After revaccination, nearly all the cats showed a strong immune response, with 96.7% for panleukopenia, 97.8% for calicivirus, and 88.2% for herpesvirus. This indicates that the immunity from these vaccines can last for over four years, suggesting that cats may not need to be revaccinated every year as previously thought. This information can help pet owners and veterinarians decide on the best vaccination schedule for their cats.
People also search for: cat vaccination schedule · how often to vaccinate cats · feline herpesvirus vaccine effectiveness
Abstract
OBJECTIVE: To determine whether vaccinated cats either remained seropositive or responded serologically to revaccination against 3 key viral antigens after extended periods since their last vaccination. DESIGN: Serologic survey. ANIMALS: 272 healthy client-owned cats. PROCEDURE: Cats were > or = 2 years old and vaccinated for feline panleukopenia virus (FPV), feline calicivirus (FCV), and feline herpesvirus (FHV). On day 0, cats were revaccinated with a vaccine from the same line of vaccines as they had historically received. Antibody titers were measured in sera collected on day 0 (prevaccination titer) and 5 to 7 days later (postvaccination titer). Cats were considered to have responded serologically if they had a day-0 hemagglutination inhibition titer to FPV > or = 1:40, serum neutralization (SN) titer to FCV > or = 1:32, SN titer to FHV > or = 1:16, or > or = 4-fold increase in antibody titer after revaccination. RESULTS: The percentage of cats that had titers at or above the threshold values or responded to revaccination with a > or = 4-fold increase in titer was 96.7% for FPV, 97.8% for FCV, and 88.2% for FHV. CONCLUSIONS AND CLINICAL RELEVANCE: In most cats, vaccination induced a response that lasted up to and beyond 48 months for all 3 antigens. Although not equivalent to challenge-of-immunity studies as a demonstration of efficacy, results suggest that revaccination with the vaccine used in our study provides adequate protection even when given less frequently than the traditional 1-year interval. The study provides valuable information for clinicians to determine appropriate revaccination intervals.
Find similar cases for your pet
PetCaseFinder finds other peer-reviewed reports of pets with the same symptoms, plus a plain-English summary of what was tried across them.
Search related cases →Original publication on PubMed: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/14710877/