Feline immunodeficiency virus (FIV) is a common lentivirus in cats that is thought to share many features in common with the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) and AIDS in people. Infection with FIV ultimately suppresses the cat’s immune system, allowing any number of secondary infections to take over.The clinical signs of FIV infection vary widely, because they are caused by the cat’s weakened immune system, which predisposes the animal to secondary infections that can occur almost
Feline immunodeficiency virus attacks a cat’s immune system. As a result, symptoms of FIV in cats can affect almost any part of the cat’s body as the immune system begins to breakdown.One of the first symptoms of FIV in cats is swollen lymph nodes and fever. These symptoms occur when the virus enters the lymph node system at the beginning stage of infection; the lymph nodes only swell for a period of time, and the
Infection by the feline immunodeficiency virus (FIV) can be diagnosed by a number of blood tests which can identify antibodies in the cat’s blood caused by previous exposure to the virus. Most of these tests can be performed at a veterinarian clinic; others will be submitted to an outside laboratory.The treating veterinarian will select the appropriate test(s) in any given case. Currently, the screening test of choice is the enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA), which can
There is no “cure” for feline immunodeficiency virus infection in cats. However, there are treatments and management protocols that can help affected cats live a longer and more comfortable life.The overriding goal of treating FIV infection is to prevent or resolve the secondary opportunistic infections that can be life-threatening due to the immunocompromised status of infected cats. By the time this disease is diagnosed, the veterinarian will already have performed a thorough physical examination and