: Veterinary knowledge regarding feline heartworm has been increasing significantly over the past two decades. Necropsy surveys of shelter cats have shown feline adult heartworm infection prevalence to be 5–20% of the rate in unprotected dogs; however, other studies have shown feline heartworm antibody prevalence up to 33%, reflecting higher exposure rates and potential immature adult infections. Thus, the true prevalence of feline heartworm infection is likely underestimated due to the limitations of current diagnostic techniques, inadequate testing protocols, and the high likelihood of cats exhibiting transient clinical signs or dying without confirmation of infection. Diagnosing Feline Heartworm Disease (FHWD), also referred to as Heartworm Associated Respiratory Disease (HARD), is one of the conundrums of veterinary medicine. The purpose of this study was to evaluate and characterize the occurrence of Heartworm Associated Respiratory Disease [HARD] in shelter cats, naturally-infected with D.immitis. Fifty shelter cats slated for euthanasia between December 2009 and June 2010 were investigated by gross necropsy, radiography, serology, and lung histopathology using techniques that have been established in experimental models of cat heartworm infection. The relationship between pulmonary vascular disease and serological markers for heartworm was also examined using correlations and statistical modeling. Serology included standard heartworm antigen test and a commonly used heartworm antibody test. Also included were heat-treated heartworm antigen test and two additional heartworm antibody tests previously evaluated on experimentally-infected cats. None of the cats were heartworm antibody (HW Ab) positive on a commonly used HW Ab test used by many reference laboratories even though 20% of the study cats were heartworm antigen (HW Ag) positive on heat-treated samples. Two additional HW Ab test were positive on 26% and 22% of the study cats. The combination of heat-treated HW Ag, HW Ab tests, and histopathology indicated 34% of the study cats had HARD. Utilizing both, the above tests, and thoracic radiographs, enhanced the ability to predict vascular disease, possibly caused by infection with immature and adult heartworms and supported the premise that cats develop heartworm disease at the same rate as dogs.

中文翻译：

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基于阿拉巴马州东北部成年收容所猫的大体尸检、血清学、肺组织病理学和放射学证据对猫心丝虫病的评估

：过去二十年来，有关猫心丝虫的兽医知识显着增加。对收容所猫的尸检调查显示，成年猫的心丝虫感染率是未受保护的狗的 5-20%；然而，其他研究表明猫心丝虫抗体患病率高达 33%，反映出较高的暴露率和潜在的未成熟成人感染。因此，由于当前诊断技术的局限性、检测方案的不充分以及猫很可能表现出短暂的临床症状或在未确认感染的情况下死亡，猫心丝虫感染的真实患病率可能被低估。诊断猫心丝虫病（FHWD），也称为心丝虫相关呼吸系统疾病（HARD），是兽医学的难题之一。本研究的目的是评估和表征自然感染 D.immitis 的收容所猫中心丝虫相关呼吸系统疾病 [HARD] 的发生情况。使用猫心丝虫感染实验模型中建立的技术，对 2009 年 12 月至 2010 年 6 月期间计划实施安乐死的 50 只收容所猫进行了大体尸检、放射线照相、血清学和肺组织病理学研究。还使用相关性和统计模型检查了肺血管疾病和心丝虫血清学标志物之间的关系。血清学包括标准的心丝虫抗原测试和常用的心丝虫抗体测试。还包括热处理的心丝虫抗原测试和先前在实验感染的猫上评估的另外两项心丝虫抗体测试。在许多参考实验室使用的常用 HW Ab 测试中，没有一只猫的心丝虫抗体 (HW Ab) 呈阳性，尽管研究中 20% 的猫在热处理样本中呈心丝虫抗原 (HW Ag) 阳性。另外两项 HW Ab 测试在 26% 和 22% 的研究猫身上呈阳性。热处理 HW Ag、HW Ab 测试和组织病理学的结合表明，34% 的研究猫患有 HARD。利用上述测试和胸部X光片，增强了预测可能由未成熟和成年心丝虫感染引起的血管疾病的能力，并支持了猫患心丝虫病的速度与狗相同的前提。