FIP Treatment
October 17, 2023 2023-10-17 13:36FIP Treatment
Recognize the FIP stages
FIP TREATMENT is based on the cat symptoms and weight, so the first step is recognize the stages of wet fip or dry fip to make sure the exact dosage.
WET FIP
Early stage Recommended dose: 6mg for every kg once per day
Young cats (≤2 years old) with periodic fever, lethargy, loss of appetite, weight loss, growth retardation, dry hair, and ineffective antibiotic treatment, needs raise the doubts about FIP. Clinical symptoms of diarrhea or constipation may also occur in some FIP cases.
FIP usually leads to leukocytosis, increased neutrophils, decreased lymphocytes, elevated serum total protein, hyperglobulinemia and hypoalbuminemia, A: G≤0.6.
Wet FIP usually has ascites or pleural effusion. The increase of ascites will cause the abdomen growth gradually and softer touch. When you gently tap its abdomen, water waves will sway, and the increased pleural effusion will also cause faster breathing. Pleural effusion can be drained, but ascites typically should not be drained unless it affects breathing.
Mid stage Recommended dose: 6mg for every kg once per day
Along with the condition development, above symptom will aggravate gradually. Or cause chronic non-regenerative anemia (HCT≤24%), hyperbilirubinemia, urine is golden yellow to dark yellow; increased ascites or pleural effusion may cause difficulty breathing, When the cat begin abdominal respiration, it need to be sent to the doctor in time; meanwhile the appetite will be further reduced, it can only eat a small amount of food.
Late stage Recommended dose: 8mg for every kg once per day
As the virus destroys and impairs the function of immune cells and condition has worsened. infected cats can develop other signs symptoms such as severe anemia (HCT≤16%), when HCT≤14%), timely blood transfusion is recommended. Loss the ability of self-feeding, walking unstable, ataxia, which may cause serious icteric and hemolytic anemia. The median survival of wet FIP is only 8 days, so early diagnosis is very important, the treatment of wet FIP is relatively easy. By timely treatment, the clinical symptoms are reversible, and the quality of life can be fully restored to the healthy level. However, in the late stage of wet FIP, irreversible damage such as multiple organ failure may occur. About 50% of the cats in this stage may still die within 1 to 7 days after treatment.
DRY FIP
Early stage Recommended dose: 8mg for every kg once per day
Young cats (≤2 years old) with periodic fever, lethargy, loss of appetite, weight loss, growth retardation, dry hair, and ineffective antibiotic treatment, needs raise the doubts about FIP. Clinical symptoms of diarrhea or constipation may also occur in some FIP cases.
FIP usually leads to leukocytosis, increased neutrophils, decreased lymphocytes, elevated serum total protein, hyperglobulinemia and hypoalbuminemia, A: G≤0.6.
Dry FIP usually has a long subclinical period, which will gradually form granuloma in various organs. This may cause not only swelling of liver, kidney and testicles but enlargement of intestinal lymph nodes, and extensive purulent peritonitis. In addition, renal medullary ring signs are also common in dry FIP.
Mid stage Recommended dose: 10mg for every kg once per day
As the disease progresses, above symptom will aggravate gradually. Or cause chronic non-regenerative anemia (HCT≤24%), jaundice, urine is golden yellow to dark yellow.
Some dry FIP can cause eye lesions, mainly uveitis. The eyeball becomes cloudy due to the aqueous humor exudation of the fluid fibers and cellular components. The iris texture is no longer clear, and sometimes a yellow-white small clot is formed. As the inflammatory product increases, a floating white turbidity can be seen in the vitreous, choroid Yellow-white granulomatous nodular plaques may appear in the blood vessels. When the virus invades the optic nerve system, it will be more difficulty to treatment.
Mid-late stage Recommended dose: 10mg for every kg once per day
As the virus destroys and impairs the function of immune cells and condition has worsened. infected cats can develop other signs symptoms such as severe anemia (HCT≤16% ), when HCT≤14%, timely blood transfusion is recommended. Other than this, infected cats may deteriorate into neurological signs and symptoms such as nystagmus, resting tremor, unable to jump to high places, rear limb weakness, bradykinesia and postural instability. FIP can also cause aseptic meningitis or meningitis epidemic, when the virus has penetrated the blood-brain barrier into the central nervous system (CNS), the treatment will be much more difficult than expected.
Late stage Signifies an ominous prognosis - 12mg ml for every kg once per day
Rigidity, confusion, urine or fecal incontinence, convulsions, seizures, tremor, paralysis, disorientation, and shock may be seen in the late stages. When symptoms emerge, cats is often already in an advanced disease stage where the central nervous system is affected and Indicated a poor outcome. Although some cats completely reversed the condition and returned to a healthy through treatment at this stage, there was also a recurrence rate of about 30% after stopping the drug.
We would especially grateful to Niels C. Pedersen
Treatment Tips
KEY INFO - PLEASE RE-READ
INJECTION
1.TIME- the shot should be given at the same time every day - if you need to change the time speak to your vet or a support counsellor (from specialized facebook groups).
2.WHERE - Rotate injection sites every day to allow them to heal, and AVOID the scruff and spine areas entirely.
3.STORAGE - keep the GS in the dark. It destabilises if kept in the light for any length of time. Room temp is fine.
4.WEIGHING- at LEAST few days, as their dose will need to be adjusted every time it changes. Cheap “baby scales” from Amazon are a good investment.
5.LEAKS- MUST be topped up immediately, even if it's only a tiny amount - please contact your vet/counsellor to check how much to top up... please DO NOT guess
6.BLUNTS - the red needles are for drawing the GS from the vial only - DO NOT use these to inject. Use a new needle and syringe for every shot.
7.No precautionary flea or worm treatments are to be used during treatment and observation, contact us if they are present.
8.FOOD/ENERGY - the kitties need energy and proteins to heal and repair. Minimum 200 calories per day. If not eating please tell us and ask for advice re syringe feeding. NO RAW FOOD.
9.We need bloods at day 28, 56 and 81/2 to monitor progress, “FULL chemistry panel and CBC”. Please NEVER stop without a previous test that recommends to stop
10.NEUTERING- if your kitty is still entire please mention this at 56 day (8week) bloods assessment. If things are going well you will be able to neuter between days 65-70, leaving two weeks of treatment to cover recovery.
11.THE TREATMENT MUST BE DONE FOR 84 CONSECUTIVE DAYS, and not be stopped until signed off recommended by specialist vet or a support counsellor at specialised facebook groups. Some kitties need to extend. An extension is a lot cheaper and less traumatic than a relapse, so please check first.
.......and finally, if in doubt, ask. Getting this treatment right is crucial. If you're not sure about anything, however small, please just talk to your vet/counselor. They might be busy but every single kitty, and yours specially, is precious and important, please communicate with them.
