Table 2.
Descriptive statistics on the signalment and clinical characteristics of 572 cats tested for feline leukaemia virus (FeLV) and feline immunodeficiency virus (FIV) using a commercially available point-of-care ELISA kit at a first-opinion veterinary practice in New Zealand between 7 April 2010 and 23 June 2016
| FeLV positive |
FIV positive |
|||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Variable | Levels | All cats | n (%) | P value* | n (%) | P value* |
| Age (years) | <1 | 52 | 2 (3.8) | – | 1 (1.9) | – |
| 1–5 | 210 | 16 (7.6) | 0.349 | 21 (10) | 0.094 | |
| 5–10 | 154 | 16 (10.3) | 0.172 | 41 (26.6) | 0.004 | |
| >10 | 126 | 4 (3.2) | 0.822 | 32 (25.4) | 0.006 | |
| Breed | Domestic | 509 | 38 (7.4) | – | 101 (19.8) | – |
| Purebred | 60 | 3 (5.0) | 0.494 | 2 (3.3) | 0.007 | |
| Sex | Female | 231 | 6 (2.6) | – | 24 (10.4) | – |
| Male | 321 | 31 (9.6) | 0.002 | 76 (23.7) | <0.001 | |
| Neutering status | Neutered | 455 | 30 (6.6) | – | 70 (15.4) | – |
| Entire | 25 | 1 (4.0) | 0.616 | 3 (12.0) | 0.647 | |
| Previous cat bites | 0 | 361 | 26 (7.2) | – | 56 (15.5) | – |
| 1 | 103 | 9 (8.8) | 0.598 | 21 (20.4) | 0.242 | |
| >2 | 103 | 6 (5.7) | 0.601 | 26 (25.2) | 0.024 | |
| Lethargy | Absent | 382 | 9 (2.4) | – | 62 (16.2) | – |
| Present | 158 | 27 (16.8) | <0.001 | 31 (19.6) | 0.343 | |
| Anorexia | Absent | 363 | 12 (3.3) | – | 59 (16.3) | – |
| Present | 184 | 25 (13.4) | <0.001 | 40 (21.7) | 0.117 | |
| Weight loss | Absent | 420 | 18 (4.3) | – | 62 (14.8) | – |
| Present | 135 | 20 (14.7) | <0.001 | 37 (27.4) | 0.001 | |
| Chronic diarrhoea | Absent | 554 | 40 (7.2) | – | 100 (18.1) | – |
| Present | 6 | 0 (0) | 0.989 | 1 (16.7) | 0.93 | |
| Pyrexia | Absent | 231 | 13 (5.6) | – | 38 (16.5) | – |
| Present | 72 | 16 (21.3) | <0.001 | 16 (22.2) | 0.266 | |
| Anaemia | Absent | 530 | 28 (5.3) | – | 92 (17.4) | – |
| Present | 33 | 13 (39.4) | <0.001 | 10 (30.3) | 0.066 | |
| Inflammatory oral disease | Absent | 496 | 34 (6.8) | – | 84 (16.9) | – |
| Present | 66 | 7 (10.6) | 0.269 | 18 (27.3) | 0.043 | |
| Lymphoma | Absent | 543 | 34 (6.2) | – | 98 (18.0) | – |
| Present | 18 | 6 (31.6) | <0.001 | 3 (16.7) | 0.881 | |
| Immunosuppression | Absent | 481 | 23 (4.8) | – | 74 (15.4) | – |
| Present | 79 | 16 (19.8) | <0.001 | 27 (34.2) | <0.001 | |
| Clinical signs of FeLV/FIV | Absent | 196 | 2 (1.0) | – | 20 (10.2) | – |
| Present | 373 | 39 (10.4) | 0.001 | 83 (22.3) | 0.001 | |
| Other systemic illness | Absent | 318 | 23 (7.2) | – | 54 (17.0) | – |
| Present | 247 | 17 (6.8) | 0.86 | 47 (19.0) | 0.529 | |
| Known FeLV/FIV exposure | No | 545 | 39 (7.1) | – | 98 (18.0) | NA |
| Yes | 24 | 2 (8.0) | 0.877 | 5 (20.8) | 0.723 | |
| Prior to FeLV/FIV vaccination | No | 467 | 40 (7.2) | – | 98 (21.0) | – |
| Yes | 102 | 1 (7.1) | 0.997 | 5 (4.9) | 0.001 | |
*
The P values are based on a χ2 test for variables with >5 observations in all cells and a Fisher’s exact test for variables with <5 observations in at least one cell
NA = not applicable