Really concerned about possible FIP Diagnosis

macy's mom

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Hi all!

I am a concerned mom right now, by vet suspects FIP in my 11 year old boy. He has fluid build up in his belly and when they took some of the fluid it was yellow. He doesn't have a fever and is alert and I am going to put his blood work here. Can it be told by the blood work what the probability is? The fluid and blood is going to Cornell but I am at my wits end waiting. He is on Baytril right now to see if that could help and advice would be so appreciated!
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neely

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I'm sorry to hear the vet suspects your cat may have FIP. :hugs: If it's any consolation, Cornell is an excellent veterinary medical school. Did they say when you can expect the blood work results? We lost a young cat to FIP when he turned 3 years old. I understand your concern and worry. I thought this Article on FIP might have some helpful information for you: Fip In Cats – TheCatSite Articles
Please keep us updated on his progress. :alright:
 
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macy's mom

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Well the titer test came back positive for FIP but I am not giving up hope, some have said that it could be pancreatitis since the The ELIS test isn't always correct.
 

neely

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Did they do a fPLI test with bloodwork for pancreatitis? Stay positive until you know exactly whether it's FIP or not and work with your vet to treat it as best you can. Thinking of you and sending special thoughts. :vibes::vibes::vibes:
 

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There's a beautiful male orange tabby on one of the apartment complexes I oversee who blew up like a balloon shortly after he was TNRd. He's super friendly so not wanting him to suffer I scooped him up and took him to the vet. His titer test came back positive too but that was over two years ago. The last time I saw him he was perfectly fine.

There's also a drug similar to Remdesivir that will cure FIP but, insanely, it's not available through vets. Someone else will have much more knowledge but I think it's called GS 4415.

Good luck with your cat. He's very lucky to have such a caring custodian.
 

MissClouseau

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Well the titer test came back positive for FIP but I am not giving up hope, some have said that it could be pancreatitis since the The ELIS test isn't always correct.
There is no FIP test. That Elisa test shows antibodies for coronavirus. One of the things they use to diagnose FIP is that if the antibodies are high, it is more likely to be FIP but that's not for sure either. (On a scale of 1-6 my friend's cat's result was 5 for example but he didn't have FIP.)

Since there is no reliable test for FIP, they use diagnostic results like blood test and antibodies test BUT also how they respond to the treatment of different things that might cause the same symptoms. This is unfortunately a stressful 'wait and see' period.

I hope you get good news. Hang in there. 🍀
 

BlackCatOp

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FIP typically occurs in cats 3 and under. While it’s not impossible for an 11 year old cat to have FIP it just makes the diagnosis less likely.

However, from his blood work, he does have elevated globulins and his albumin:globulin ratio is decreased at 0.37 which can be indicative of FIP. He also has a mild anemia. From his bloodwork, I can see why his vet is concerned about FIP. My concern is you indicated that he is acting normal. FIP cats are sick, lethargic, not eating and aren’t themselves. One of the big differentials for FIP is Lymphocytic Cholangitis. These cats have the same fluid as FIP cats and the elevated globulins but don’t have the fever and typically are not as ill (plus it’s treatable.) Don’t know if your vet has mentioned lymphocytic cholangitis but it may be something to consider.
 

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A cat must have been exposed to the coronavirus in order for there to be a possibility of it mutating to FIP. Did the vet test for this virus? Many cats do have coronavirus, but there is no absolute about it mutating, and a lot of cats live their entire lives without this happening. But, cats that do have coronavirus can have it mutate to FIP, either when they are very young or when they are older - due to weakened immune systems. In young cats it is because their immune system is still maturing, in older cats it is due to an immune system that is compromised by age and/or other underlying illnesses. My Tawny died of FIP at 15, but it was so, so long ago no tests were available to confirm that diagnosis.

There is one test that can be done on the belly fluid that I believe it supposed to be pretty accurate - although I am not sure it hasn't been replaced by an even more accurate test at this point. Here is a document about it (see link below). I wonder if Cornell will be using this test. They are more than likely to also be aware of the possible treatments, as in more recent years, there have been some positive results in this area. I have also included a link about FIP and coronavirus that you might be interested in as well.
https://www.idexx.com/files/feline-infectious-peritonitis-virus.pdf
Feline Infectious Peritonitis and Coronavirus Web Site
 
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kittenmittens84

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A/g of .37 is not great, I think it’s below .5 or .4 that’s a 90%+ predictive indicator for FIP if other symptoms are present. At age 11 it would be less likely but still possible, especially since seniors are more likely to get FIP than younger adult cats. Is he lethargic? Loss of appetite? Any nausea? Did they happen to ultrasound his lymph nodes?

One additional thing that makes FIP tough is it can be brewing at a low level in cats for long before we as owners notice that anything serious is wrong, which makes it difficult to differentiate between “is this FIP and we just caught it early and that’s why he’s still fairly active?” or “is this something else/something less serious?” With my cat who had FIP his belly was swollen enough for me to notice it far before he started slowing down/actually acting sick, but we (and the vet) thought it was normal kitten potbelly combined with possible worms.
 
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macy's mom

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I know it was the Feline Coronavirus ELISA test they did. He is jumping up and down from areas and when he is standing up or sitting you don't see that much of a belly but you do when he crouches. His doesn't have the greatest appetite but he wants food. I do have him on Baytri right now so maybe that is upsetting the belly. He was actually playing with yarn yesterday which I have never seen him do before. The vet did not test for pancreatitis but but you all are like the 6th ones that have mentioned it. He is acting more normal on the antibiotic but still seems like he is in pain. :( I am more than willing to try the GS medication but it is only available on the black market and the total cost of an 84 day treatment is 4,800.00. If I get the results back from Cornell I will post them here for you, the vet is supposed to be sending them to me today.
 
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macy's mom

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So this is what I got back from Cornell, I had to laugh
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OMG! I am sorry, but WTF? Surely, there HAS to be more????

EDIT: Find out if you can get the belly fluid analyzed. I am gathering that wasn't done?
 
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macy's mom

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thats what they sent to Cornell was the belly fluid plus they said that his bloodwork doesn't show any reason to test for pancreatitis.
 

FeebysOwner

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I guess the key to their 'simple' report is the word "positive'. Positive as in what? It doesn't mention FIP, it mentions coronavirus, so that confuses me, as I am sure it does you.
 
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macy's mom

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The test simply just says he has the coronavirus not a def diagnosis of FIP
 

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