Peer-reviewed veterinary case report
Cat with feline leprosy skin lesion that healed on its own
By Roccabianca, P et al.·Published in Journal of the American Animal Hospital Association·1996·Istituto di Anatomia Patologica Veterinaria e Patologia Aviare, Italy·View original on PubMed →
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Original publication title: Feline leprosy: spontaneous remission in a cat.
- Species:
- cat
Plain-English summary
A 2-year-old male domestic shorthair cat was brought to the vet because of a suspicious sore on his right front leg. Tests showed signs of feline leprosy, but no treatment was given. Surprisingly, the sore healed completely on its own within about 3.5 months, and after 14 months, the cat remained healthy with no signs of the disease returning.
People also search for: cat skin sore treatment · feline leprosy symptoms · why is my cat's leg sore
Abstract
A two-year-old, male domestic shorthair with a solitary lesion of the right forelimb was presented for fine-needle aspiration biopsy of a suspected cutaneous, neoplastic process. Neutrophils, lymphocytes, and acid-fast bacilli packed in the cytoplasm of foamy macrophages and giant cells were seen on cytological examination. Bacteriological culture of the material from the skin lesion was negative for Mycobacterium spp. Intraperitoneal injection of homogenized material from the lesion resulted in generalized mycobacteriosis in one mouse after 10 months. Based on these results, a diagnosis of feline leprosy was made. No medical or surgical therapy was performed. Nonetheless, the lesion showed progressive and complete spontaneous remission within 3.5 months from the time of diagnosis; after 14 months, the cat still is free of disease.
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Search related cases →Original publication on PubMed: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/8731131/