title: Prevalence, risk factors, and genetic diversity of Bartonella henselae infections in pet cats in four regions of the United States.
abstract: Blood was collected from a convenience sample of 271 pet cats aged 3 months to 2 years (mean age, 8 months, median and mode, 6 months) between May 1997 and September 1998 in four areas of the United States (southern California, Florida, metropolitan Chicago, and metropolitan Washington, D.C.). Sixty-five (24%) cats had Bartonella henselae bacteremia, and 138 (51%) cats were seropositive for B. henselae. Regional prevalences for bacteremia and seropositivity were highest in Florida (33% and 67%, respectively) and California (28% and 62%, respectively) and lowest in the Washington, D.C. (12% and 28%, respectively) and Chicago (6% and 12%, respectively) areas. No cats bacteremic with B. clarridgeiae were found. The 16S rRNA type was determined for 49 B. henselae isolates. Fourteen of 49 cats (28.6%) were infected with 16S rRNA type I, 32 (65.3%) with 16S rRNA type II, and three (6.1%) were coinfected with 16S rRNA types I and II. Flea infestation was a significant risk factor for B. henselae bacteremia (odds ratio = 2.82, 95% confidence interval, 1.1 to 7.3). Cats >or=13 months old were significantly less likely to be bacteremic than cats <or=6 months old (odds ratio = 0.18, 95% confidence interval, 0.05 to 0.61). Flea infestation, adoption from a shelter or as a stray cat, hunting, and being from Florida or California were significant risk factors for B. henselae seropositivity. DNA fingerprint was significantly associated with region (P = 0.03) and indoor/outdoor status of cats (P = 0.03).
authors.affiliation: Department of Veterinary Clinical Sciences, Pathobiology Center for Applied Ethology and Human-Animal Interaction, Purdue University, West Lafayette, Indiana 47907, USA. guptillc@purdue.edu
authors.forename: L
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Guptill
authors.forename: C-C
authors.initials: CC
authors.lastname: Wu
authors.forename: H
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: HogenEsch
authors.forename: L N
authors.initials: LN
authors.lastname: Slater
authors.forename: N
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Glickman
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Dunham
authors.forename: H
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Syme
authors.forename: L
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Glickman
mesh_terms: D000375:Aging; D000818:Animals; D000829:Animals, Domestic; D001474:Bartonella Infections / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000662:veterinary*; D018416:Bartonella henselae / Q000235:genetics* / Q000302:isolation & purification; D002371:Cat Diseases / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000382:microbiology; D002415:Cats; D004269:DNA, Bacterial / Q000235:genetics / Q000302:isolation & purification; D005843:Geography; D015999:Multivariate Analysis; D016133:Polymerase Chain Reaction / Q000379:methods; D015995:Prevalence; D012307:Risk Factors; D014481:United States
chemical_list: D004269:DNA, Bacterial