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Epidemiology:
10% of intact male cats and 3.5% of healthy UK cats are seropositve. Cell associated virus
with bite-transfer between roaming or mating cats and vaginal-transfer at mating is
associated with most chance of progressive disease. Oral-transfer via saliva at mutual
grooming is common but rarely results in disease - as with a well-adjusted virus it
circulates without killing its hosts. No vertical transfer.Diagnosis:
An in-practice ELISA for serum antibody to FIV is routinely used during health checks and
before rehoming stray cats. As with FeLV some of the positives achieved by ELISA are false
because during lab-based tests the blood does not contain antibody by immunofluorescence
of FIV-infected cell lines. |
