Pilot Study to Evaluate the Effect of Oral Supplementation of Enterococcus Faecium SF68 on Cats with Latent Feline Herpesvirus 1

Overview

Journal J Feline Med Surg

Specialty Veterinary Medicine

Date 2009 Feb 10

PMID 19201238

Citations 15

Authors

Michael R Lappin

Julia K Veir

Ebenezer Satyaraj

Gail Czarnecki-Maulden

Affiliations

Soon will be listed here.

Abstract

Feline herpesvirus 1 (FHV-1) infection is extremely common in cats and is frequently associated with morbidity because of recurrent ocular and respiratory clinical signs of disease. Enterococcus faecium strain SF68 is an immune-enhancing probiotic used as a dietary supplement. In this pilot study, 12 cats with chronic FHV-1 infection were administered either SF68 or a placebo, monitored for clinical signs of disease, monitored for FHV-1 shedding, and evaluated for FHV-1 specific humoral and cell-mediated immune responses and fecal microbiome stability. Fecal microbial diversity was maintained throughout the study in cats supplemented with SF68, but decreased in cats fed the placebo, indicating a more stable microbiome in cats fed SF68. While clinical results varied among individual cats, the overall findings suggest that administration of the probiotic lessened morbidity associated with chronic FHV-1 infection in some cats. Additional study is warranted to determine efficacy in a clinical setting.

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