A survey of FIV antibodies and FeLV antigens in free-roaming cats in the capital area of Finland.

Feline immunodeficiency virus (FIV) was first isolated and identified in 1986. Since then it has been shown to have a worldwide distribution, and the infection generally appears to have reached a state of endemicity. This is the 1st study of FIV-prevalence in Finland. Serum samples of 196 free-roaming cats were tested for antibodies to FIV and FeLV antigens (Feline leukemia virus). With a combined enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA), 13 of the cats (6.6%) turned out to be positive for FIV and 2 for FeLV (1.0%). Adult male cats in the capital area of Finland had a FIV prevalence of 24%, a relative proportion 4.7 times higher than that for females.     

Association between feline immunodeficiency virus antibodies and host characteristics in Finnish cats.

Toward the end of 1989 the largest private veterinary laboratory in Finland (Vet/lab) began using a commercial combined ELISA test for Feline Immunodeficiency Virus (FIV) antibodies and Feline Leukemia Virus (FeLV) antigens (Cite Combo). The overall proportion of FIV seropositive feline samples was 5% during the 22 month study period. The number of tests performed increased slowly while the positive test results decreased with time (7% in 1990 and 4% in 1991). The decrease in prevalence was assumed to reflect a change in the sample population rather than an actual change in the general cat population. There were more symptomatic and domestic cats tested in 1990 than 1991. The lower-risk groups in the second year of the study may simply be an indication that the cat owners became more aware of FIV and the motivation to send samples switched from the veterinarian's interest to diagnose the disease in a symptomatic cat to the owner's interest to survey their cats for possible FIV infection. In a multivariable analysis, breed, symptoms, age and sex were associated with the risk of FIV seropositivity. The risk increased faster with age in males than in females (i.e., the age effect was not constant between sexes). The cats with symptoms had a higher risk than those without symptoms and non-purebred cats were at a higher risk than purebred cats. FeLV infection was not associated with FIV.