Histopathological characterization of skin and oral lesions in domestic cats (Felis catus)

Abstract

Oral and cutaneous lesions are often diagnosed in cats and are associated with various pathogens. The objective of this study is the histological characterization of the cutaneous and oral lesions in cats. During 2023-2024, 11 cutaneous and oral lesions were identified, collected and analyzed at the Infectious Diseases and Pathological Anatomy Clinic of the Faculty of Veterinary Medicine of Iasi. The samples were collected from European breed cats, 6 female and 5 male cases. Lesions were more frequent in cats older than two years (n=7), followed by cats under 6 months of age (n=3) and cats aged between 6 months and 1,5 years (n= 1). At the same time, concurrent viral infections with Felin Parvovirus (n=5), Feline Calicivirus (n=3), Feline Herpesvirus (n=3),Feline Leukemia Virus (n=2) and one suspicion of Feline Perionitis Virus were associated prior the histopathological evaluation. Histopathologically, the inflammatory lesions were consisting in Gingivostomatits (necrotic and lymphoplasmacytic) (n=6) and in one case of cutaneous mastocytosis. Among neoplastic lesions, oral squamous cell carcinoma was the most common (n=2), followed by cutaneous cell carcinoma (n=1) and hemangiopericytoma (n=1). These results contribute to the understanding of feline cutaneous and oral pathology and show the importance of histopathological examination in their accurate diagnosis.