Peer-reviewed veterinary case report
Feline coronavirus and diarrhea in cats from breeding catteries
By Felten, Sandra et al.·Published in Viruses·2022·Clinic of Small Animal Medicine, Germany·View original on PubMed →
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Original publication title: Role of Feline Coronavirus as Contributor to Diarrhea in Cats from Breeding Catteries.
- Species:
- cat
Plain-English summary
A group of 234 cats from breeding catteries were tested for feline coronavirus (FCoV) to see if it was linked to diarrhea. Out of these cats, 23 had diarrhea, and those with diarrhea had a much higher rate of FCoV infection compared to those without. The study found that FCoV infection was significantly associated with diarrhea, but the severity of the infection did not directly relate to how severe the diarrhea was. This suggests that while FCoV is common in catteries and can contribute to diarrhea, other factors may also play a role.
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Abstract
(1) Background: Feline coronavirus infection (FCoV) is common in multi-cat environments. A role of FCoV in causing diarrhea is often assumed, but has not been proven. The aim of this study was to evaluate an association of FCoV infection with diarrhea in multi-cat environments. (2) Methods: The study included 234 cats from 37 catteries. Fecal samples were analyzed for FCoV RNA by reverse transcriptase quantitative polymerase chain reaction (RT-qPCR). Potential co-infections were determined by applying a qPCR panel on different potential enteropathogens and fecal flotation. A fecal scoring system was used to categorize feces as diarrheic or non-diarrheic. (3) Results: Of the 234 cats included, 23 had diarrhea. The prevalence of FCoV infection was 87.0% in cats with and 58.8% in cats without diarrhea. FCoV infection was significantly associated with diarrhea (Odds Ratio (OR) 5.01;= 0.008). In addition, presence ofα toxin (OR 6.93;= 0.032) and feline panleukopenia virus (OR 13.74;= 0.004) were associated with an increased risk of diarrhea. There was no correlation between FCoV load and fecal score. FCoV-positive cats with co-infections were not more likely to have diarrhea than FCoV-positive cats without co-infections (= 0.455). (4) Conclusions: FCoV infection is common in cats from catteries and can be associated with diarrhea.
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Search related cases →Original publication on PubMed: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/35632600/