Mycobacterial infections in cats (and dogs) – focusing on tuberculosis (2020)
Overview
This talk will discuss the increasing recognition of these important potentially zoonotic and nosocomial infections in pet cats (and dogs) in the UK. Almost ~1% of all feline tissue biopsies sent for routine pathology in laboratories in the UK have histopathology changes consistent with mycobacterial infections; of these cases, ~35% have tuberculosis (TB); ~20% caused by Mycobacterium microti (the Vole bacillus) and ~15% caused by Mycobacterium bovis. Most cases of Tb and non-Tb mycobacterial infections are cutaneous and/or affect local lymph nodes, especially submandibular or popliteal. Making a diagnosis can be complex, typically involving Ziehl-Neelsen staining, specialist culture, PCR tests and/or IFNgamma release assay [IGRA]).We will review management options. While treating acat of TB may be contentious, >70% gain long-term remission following treatment with 3 drugs for 4-6 months. Before treatment consider potential risks:M. bovis is Notifiable in the UK; TBis potentially zoonotic, extent and severity of the cat’s clinical signs;exposed immunosuppressed people; expense and potential toxicity of treatment; and cat and owner compliance.
Presenters
Professor Danièlle A. Gunn-Moore BSc(Hon), BVM&S, PhD, MANZCVS (Feline), FHEA, FRSB, FRCVS, RCVS Specialist in Feline Medicine
Danièlle Gunn-Moore graduated from the R(D)SVS, University of Edinburgh, with the Dick Vet Gold Medal in 1991. After a year in small animal practice she joined The Feline Centre, University of Bristol, initially as the Feline Advisory Bureau Scholar, then the Duphar Feline Fellow, and completed a PhD study into Feline Infectious Peritonitis in 1997. After a short period as Lecturer in Veterinary Pathology, University of Bristol, she returned to Edinburgh to establish the Feline Clinic and became Professor of Feline Medicine in 2006. She is interested in all aspects of feline medicine; she is an internationally recognised expert in her area, has lectured extensively and published over a 130 peer-reviewed research papers, plus many reviews and book chapters. In 2009 she was awarded the BSAVA Woodrow Award for outstanding contribution in the field of small animal veterinary medicine, in 2011 she was awarded the International Society for Feline Medicine/Hill’s award for Outstanding Contributions to Feline Medicine, in2012 the Royal Dick students voted her “The clinician I would most like to be”, in 2016 FECAVA awarded her “Increased Vocalisation in Elderly Cats” the most original paper in the European Journal of Companion Animal Practice that year, and in 2017 she became a Fellow of the RCVS. She shares her home with her husband Frank, a tiny little 20 year old black cat called Sheba-Ardbeg, and a gorgeous Maine Coon kitten of 8 months old called Brora..