Peer-reviewed veterinary case report
Test to check cat antibodies for feline panleukopenia virus immunity
By Mende, Katherina et al.·Published in Journal of feline medicine and surgery·2014·Clinic of Small Animal Medicine, Germany·View original on PubMed →
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Original publication title: Evaluation of an in-house dot enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay to detect antibodies against feline panleukopenia virus.
- Species:
- cat
Plain-English summary
A study evaluated a new test called the ImmunoComb Feline VacciCheck, which checks for antibodies against feline panleukopenia virus (FPV) in cats. This test can help veterinarians determine if a cat is protected against FPV without automatically giving annual vaccinations. The test showed good accuracy, especially when a lower antibody level was considered sufficient for protection. It could be a helpful tool for assessing a cat's immunity and deciding if a vaccination is needed.
People also search for: cat vaccination test · feline panleukopenia virus antibody test · why does my cat need a vaccine · cat immunity test · feline health assessment
Abstract
Measuring antibody titres to determine a cat's immunity to core diseases instead of just administering annual vaccinations has not been established in Germany so far. An in-house test kit for the detection of antibodies against feline panleukopenia virus (FPV), feline herpesvirus-1 and feline calicivirus-- the ImmunoComb Feline VacciCheck--is now available in several European countries. The aim of this study was to assess the quality of the ImmunoComb Feline VacciCheck to determine antibodies by comparing it to a gold standard. The test is aimed for use in practice to assist decision-making when performing an individual health assessment to see whether a cat is potentially unprotected against FPV and requires FPV vaccination. Sera from 347 cats were included in the study. For antibody detection, haemagglutination inhibition (HI) was performed as gold standard. Sensitivity, specificity and positive and negative predictive values of the ImmunoComb Feline VacciCheck were determined for three different HI titre cut-off points (1:20, 1:40, 1:80). In comparison to the HI, the ImmunoComb Feline VacciCheck showed a sensitivity of 79%, 83% and 87%, and a specificity of 89%, 86% and 81%, respectively. Specificity of the ImmunoComb Feline VacciCheck, which was considered the most important parameter, was acceptable in comparison to HI. Especially when considering an antibody titre of 1:20 sufficient for protection (eg, in an adult animal), the ImmunoComb Feline VacciCheck can be recommended for use in veterinary practice.
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Search related cases →Original publication on PubMed: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/24496322/