FIV Feline immunodeficiency virus
Feline immunodeficiency virus (FIV) causes an infectious disease in domestic cats and cheetahs similar to human immunodeficiency virus (HIV infection) in humans. It attacks and weakens the body's immune system, making the animal susceptible to infections and diseases that don't affect healthy cats. There is neither a cure nor a vaccine for FIV. Though eventually fatal, an FIV-positive cat can live for many years without any signs of illness.
FIV is a lentivirus, a virus that causes slowly developing disease.
Prevalence
FIV occurs worldwide and its prevalence varies geographically. About 1.5% to 3% of cats in the United States are infected with FIV. About 5% of FIV-positive cats also have feline leukemia virus (FeLV).
Risk factors for FIV include
· age,
· gender,
· illness, and
· time spent outdoors.
Older cats are more likely to be infected. The average age of cats with FIV is 5 years at the time of diagnosis.
Aggressive, male cats that roam and fight with other cats are more likely to be infected than females and nonaggressive males.
Sick cats are much more likely to have FIV. In the United States, about 15% of all cats that show clinical signs of another disease are also infected with FIV.
Free-roaming cats are more likely to be infected than indoor cats.
FIV is transmitted primarily through deep, penetrating bite wounds. A mother cat may transmit the virus to her newborn kittens during gestation, passage through the birth canal, or nursing. FIV can also be transmitted through the transfusion of contaminated blood.
FIV affects only felines. Some of the pathogens (i.e., bacteria, parasites) that cause opportunistic infections in FIV-positive cats may be transmitted from animals to humans and could cause illness in people with compromised immune systems.