Introduction

Feline herpesvirus-1 (FHV-1) is a common cause of ocular and upper respiratory disease. Treatment of this disease is challenging and antiviral treatment is promising.

Objectives

The aim is to evaluate the efficacy of a treatment protocol containing systemic famciclovir, l-lysine, amoxicillin + clavulanic acid and topical acyclovir ointment in the cat with FHV-1 infection.

Methods

Twenty-eight cats with FHV-1 infection were recruited in treatment protocol. The protocol was as follows: 125 mg/cat famciclovir (Famvir, Novartis) orally BID for 10 d, 500 mg/cat lysine (L-Lysine, Solgar) orally SID for 10 d, antibiotic 7 mg/kg amoxicillin plus 1.75 mg/kg clavulanic acid injection (Synulox, Pfizer) SID for 10 d and acyclovir 3% ophthalmic ointment (Zovirax, GlaxoSmithKline) TID for 10 d. Arginine and lysine ratio in serum samples were also determined before and after the treatment.

Results

FHV-1 was detected in lacrimal and oropharyngeal samples by PCR technique. All cats were showing primarily conjunctivitis and some of them were having additional signs of rhinotracheitis. Conjunctivitis was determined as inflammation of lining of the lids and the third eyelid, including front part of the eye. Clinical symptoms of the cats with FHV-1 infection improved substantially with the treatment. Full recovery has been observed in 80% of the affected cats based on the clinical healing scores. The rest of the affected cats responded with a limited healing to the treatment.

Conclusions

A 10-d protocol of systemic famciclovir, l-lysine, amoxicillin + clavulanic acid and topical acyclovir significantly improved the clinical signs caused by FHV-1 infection despite the difficulty of oral drug administration to the cat.