Randomized masked controlled clinical trial to compare 7-day and 14-day course length of doxycycline in the treatment of Mycoplasma felis infection in shelter cats.

Abstract

The aim of this study was to compare the clinical and microbial efficacy of a 7-day or a 14-day course of doxycycline for the treatment of Mycoplasma felis-infected cats with clinical signs of upper respiratory tract disease (URTD) assessed using clinical scoring criteria. Cats were randomly allocated to either the Doxy-7 group (N=20; 7-day course of oral doxycyline liquid followed by 7-days placebo); or the Doxy-14 group (N=20; 14-day course of oral doxycycline). There were no significant differences in Mycoplasma load between groups at Day 1 or Day 7 (P>0.05), but at Day 14 mean Mycoplasma load was lower in the Doxy-14 group (P=0.01). Mycoplasma load reduced over Days 1-7 in each group (P<0.01), but only the Doxy-14 group had a significantly reduced Mycoplasma load at Day 14 compared to Day 1 (P<0.01). On Day 14, 11 (55%) cats in the Doxy-7 group and 5 (25%) cats in the Doxy-14 group had positive PCR results for M. felis. There was a statistically significant reduction within each group across the Day 1-7 period for ocular discharge, nasal discharge, demeanor, and food intake scores (P<0.01 for each score category). Nasal discharge scores and sneezing scores were statistically lower in the Doxy-14 group than in the Doxy-7 group on individual days during the Day 8-14 period (P<0.05). We conclude that in M. felis-infected cats with clinical signs of URTD, a 14-day course of oral doxycycline produced superior microbial but not clinical results compared to a 7-day course of treatment.

• Authors: B Kompare, A L Litster, C M Leutenegger, H-Y Weng
• Journal: Comparative immunology, microbiology and infectious diseases (Comp Immunol Microbiol Infect Dis) Vol. 36 Issue 2 Pg. 129-35 (Mar 2013) ISSN: 1878-1667 [Electronic] England
• PMID: 23246249 (Publication Type: Journal Article, Randomized Controlled Trial, Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't)
• Copyright: Copyright © 2012 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Chemical References

• Anti-Bacterial Agents
• Doxycycline

Topics

• Animals
• Anti-Bacterial Agents (administration & dosage, therapeutic use)
• Cat Diseases (drug therapy, microbiology)
• Cats
• Doxycycline (administration & dosage, therapeutic use)
• Drug Administration Schedule
• Mycoplasma (genetics)
• Mycoplasma Infections (drug therapy, veterinary)
• Treatment Outcome