Peer-reviewed veterinary case report
Polyprenyl Immunostimulant helps some cats live longer with dry FIP
By Legendre, Alfred M et al.·Published in Frontiers in veterinary science·2017·College of Veterinary Medicine, United States·View original on PubMed →
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Original publication title: Polyprenyl Immunostimulant Treatment of Cats with Presumptive Non-Effusive Feline Infectious Peritonitis In a Field Study.
- Species:
- cat
Plain-English summary
A group of cats diagnosed with the non-effusive form of feline infectious peritonitis (FIP), a serious and often fatal disease, were treated with a medication called Polyprenyl Immunostimulant (PI). Out of 60 cats treated, 8 survived for over 200 days, and 4 lived beyond 300 days, which is significantly longer than expected for this condition. Many of the veterinarians reported improvements in the cats' clinical signs and behavior during treatment, especially in those not given corticosteroids at the same time. While PI isn't a cure for FIP, it shows potential as a treatment option.
People also search for: cat FIP treatment · feline infectious peritonitis survival · Polyprenyl Immunostimulant for cats
Abstract
Feline infectious peritonitis (FIP) is a fatal disease with no clinically effective treatment. This field study evaluated treatment with Polyprenyl Immunostimulant (PI) in cats with the non-effusive form of FIP. Because immune suppression is a major component in the pathology of FIP, we hypothesized that treatment with an immune system stimulant would increase survival times of cats with dry FIP. Sixty cats, diagnosed with dry FIP by primary care and specialist veterinarians and meeting the acceptance criteria, were treated with PI without intentional selection of less severe cases. The survival time from the start of PI treatment in cats diagnosed with dry FIP showed that of the 60 cats with dry FIP treated with PI, 8 survived over 200 days, and 4 of 60 survived over 300 days. A literature search identified 59 cats with non-effusive or dry FIP; no cat with only dry FIP lived longer than 200 days. Veterinarians of cats treated with PI that survived over 30 days reported improvements in clinical signs and behavior. The survival times in our study were significantly longer in cats who were not treated with corticosteroids concurrently with PI. While not a cure, PI shows promise in the treatment of dry form FIP, but a controlled study will be needed to verify the benefit.
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Search related cases →Original publication on PubMed: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/28261584/