Peer-reviewed veterinary case report
Deadly outbreak of feline calicivirus causing jaundice and lameness
By Coyne, K P et al.·Published in The Veterinary record·2006·Department of Veterinary Pathology University of Liverpool Veterinary Teaching Hospital, United Kingdom·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 We do not publish original research — every detail traces back to the citation above.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: Lethal outbreak of disease associated with feline calicivirus infection in cats.
- Species:
- cat
Plain-English summary
A group of four adult cats in a household in the UK experienced severe illness due to a highly virulent strain of feline calicivirus (FCV). Symptoms included fever, lameness, loss of voice, not eating, and jaundice. Unfortunately, three of the cats died, while one recovered after treatment. The outbreak was managed by quarantining the cats in their home, which helped prevent further spread of the disease.
People also search for: cat jaundice symptoms · feline calicivirus outbreak · why is my cat not eating · cat fever treatment · lameness in cats causes
Abstract
Recently, in the USA, virulent mutants of feline calicivirus (FCV) have been identified as the cause of a severe and acute virulent systemic disease, characterised by jaundice, oedema and high mortality in groups of cats. This severe manifestation of FCV disease has so far only been reported in the USA. However, in 2003, an outbreak of disease affected a household of four adult cats and an adult cat from a neighbouring household in the UK. Three of the adult cats in the household and the neighbouring cat developed clinical signs including pyrexia (39.5 to 40.5 degrees C), lameness, voice loss, inappetence and jaundice. One cat was euthanased in extremis, two died and one recovered. A postmortem examination of one of the cats revealed focal cellulitis around the right hock and right elbow joints. The principal finding of histopathological examinations of selected organs from two of the cats was disseminated hepatocellular necrosis with mild inflammatory infiltration. Immunohistology identified FCV antigen in parenchymal and Kupffer cells in the liver of both animals and in alveolar macrophages of one of them. In addition, calicivirus-like particles were observed by electron microscopy within the hepatocytes of one cat. FCV was isolated from two of the dead cats and from the two surviving cats. Sequence analysis showed that they were all infected with the same strain of virus, but that it was different from strains of FCV associated with the virulent systemic disease in cats in the USA. The outbreak was successfully controlled by quarantine in the owner's house.
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/16632527/