Hematologic manifestations of feline immunodeficiency virus infection
GH Shelton, ML Linenberger, CK Grant and JL Abkowitz
Feline Retrovirus Clinic, Pacific Northwest Research Foundation, Seattle,
WA 98122.
Studies were done on 53 cats with community-acquired infection with the
feline immunodeficiency virus (FIV) to determine if hematologic
abnormalities were comparable with those observed in patients seropositive
for the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV). Nine cats were asymptomatic, 24
had clinical symptoms equivalent to AIDS-related complex (ARC), and 20 had
AIDS-like disease. Hematologic abnormalities were detected in 75% (40 of
53) of FIV-seropositive cats, and multiple concurrent cytopenias were
common. Anemia, lymphopenia, neutropenia, and thrombocytopenia occurred in
36%, 53%, 34%, and 8% of FIV- seropositive cats, respectively. Cytopenias
were seen only in symptomatic (ARC or AIDS) cats. The occurrence of
cytopenias and the distribution of clinical stages were similar in cats
with concurrent feline leukemia virus (FeLV) infection and those with FIV
alone, suggesting that these abnormalities were a direct consequence of FIV
infection. In addition, abnormalities were noted in 72% of marrows from
symptomatic cats and included hyperplasia of individual cell lineages and
dysmorphic features. Our results demonstrate that the hematologic
manifestations of FIV infection are strikingly similar to those reported in
HIV-seropositive patients. Thus, FIV infection in cats is an excellent
animal model to study the pathogenesis of blood and marrow abnormalities in
AIDS, as well as to evaluate the hematologic toxicities of drug therapies.
Volume 76,
Issue 6,
pp. 1104-1109,
09/15/1990
Copyright © 1990 by The American Society of Hematology
