Bovine Renal Disease Flashcards by Renee DeAngelis

What quick test can be performed on a PE to diagnose renal disease?

vigorously rub the hard palate and smell hand —> ammonia odor indicative of pyelonephritis

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Urinary system:

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How are the kidneys palpated? When are they commonly enlarged?

rectal palpation

neoplasia
hydronephrosis
acute nephritis
pyelonephritis

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When are kidneys most commonly decreased in size?

dehydration
advanced chronic interstitial nephritis

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When are kidneys painful on palpation?

acute nephritis

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What is the normal structure of bovine kidneys?

lobulated –> loss of lobulation can occur with neoplasia, abscesses, pyelonephritis, or nephritis

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How are ureters normally palpated on rectals?

usually not palpated - may be palpated with pyelonephritis or urine retention (calculi)

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Where does the bladder lie on rectal exams? What causes distention? Pain?

under the rectum in males and under the vagina in females

urine retention or calculi

cystitis

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Where does the urethra end in females?

floor of the vagina, 8-10 cm from the opening

visualized with vaginal speculum

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What is characteristic of the male urethra?

sigmoid flexure (S-shaped curvature of the penis) - predilection site of urolithiaisis

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What are 6 special methods of examining the urinary tract in cattle?

urethral catheterization
ultrasonography
radiographs
urinalysis
rectal exams
kidney function test - urea, creatinine

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How often do cattle urinate? How much?

8-12 times a day

6-12 L a day

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What are some historical presentations with urinary disease in cattle?

difficulty or discomfort in the passage of urine
straining or arching the back before, during, or after urination (may look like constipation)
anorexia, depression
abdominal pain - kicking at abdomen, frequent changes in position, bellowing
abdominal distension with rupture of the bladder
swelling around prepuce extending along the ventral abdominal wall with urethral ruptures

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What are some important signs on PE indicative of urinary disease?

arched back
straining to urinate with a pump handle tail
fluid wave
pulsation/throbbing of urethra
using a speculum and light to find source of pus/blood
rectal palpation

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What does a pump handle tail in a bull commonly indicate?

urinary calculi (urolithiasis)

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What is waterbelly? How is it diagnosed?

urine accumulation in the abdomen, causing a pear-shaped appearance from the back

abdominocentesis - urine vs. acites vs. hemorrhage

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What are 3 important factors evaluated with urine samples?

quantity - 6-12 L/day
color - usually golden and clear, red indicates presence of RBCs or hemoglobin, yellow indicates presence of bile pigments (liver disease), cloudy if pus is present
smell - fetid if infected or retained

How can hematuria and hemoglobinuria be differentiated?

centrifuge/leave the sample to sit for 20-25 mins - RBCs will sedimentate, hemoglobinuria will remain pink

can also use smears

How is specific gravity assessed?

refractometer (quantitative)

DON’T rely on dip sticks

What is the normal specific gravity and pH of bovine urine? What are causes of changes in pH?

1.020-1.045

7-8 - herbivores have more basic urine

ALKALINITY - urolithiasis
ACIDITY - infections

When are dysuria and proteinuria most commonly seen?

painful urination - cystitis, urethritis, vaginitis

glomerulonephritis, nephrosis, amyloidosis

What are 3 types of oliguria?

PRE-RENAL - dehydration, shock, chronic heart failure
RENAL - acute nephrosis, glomerulonephritis
POST-RENAL - ureteral, urethral, or urinary bladder obstruction

What 4 diseases can cause polyuria in cattle?

pyometra
acure/chronic kidney failure
hyperadrenocorticism
osmotic diuresis - DM (rare)

What causes anuria?

complete urethral obstruction (urolithiasis)

What are some renal and post-renal causes of hematuria?

RENAL - severe glomerulonephritis, sulphonamide poisoning (only use this antibiotic <3 days at a time), renal infarction --> RBCs pass through glomeruli and enter urine POST-RENAL - pyelonephritis, cystitis, urolithiasis

What causes hemoglobinuria? 4 examples?

intravascular hemolysis 1. Babesiosis 2. Leptospirosis 3. postparturient 4. bacillary - Clostridium hemolyticum

What needs to be avoided when collecting urine from a catheter?

suburethral diverticulum ventral to the bladder

Other than urinary disease, what 4 disease processes can Leptospirosis cause?

1. abortion 2. weak calves 3. flaccid udder mastitis - no swelling, bloody milk 4. milk-drop syndrome - sudden decrease in milk production

What cattle have the highest mortality in cases of leptospirosis? What serovar is commonly associated? What are 3 signs?

calves - mortality is rare in adults, which are more commonly carriers within their kidneys Pomona 1. hemoglobinuria 2. jaundice (prehepatic) 3. hemolytic anemia +/- inappetence, dysuria, decreased milk production

What are 2 techniques used for diagnosing leptospirosis in cattle?

1. serologic testing - presumptive, not definitive --> high titer can be consistent with clinical disease or vaccination 2. PCR

What are some options for treating Leptospirosis?

- PPG - OTC* - may be nephrotoxic - Tilmicosin* - Ceftiofur* * = clear carrier status, where there are typically no signs

How is Leptospirosis transmission controlled?

- vaccine - 5-way European strains, American Harjo and combo ---> short protection period due to relatively low antibody formation (100-400) that persist for 1-3 months - rodent and wildlife control - identify and remove carriers - drain wet areas

What is the difference in disease with the different strains of Leptospirosis?

Hardjo - host-adapted, most common, none to mild signs Pomona - calf disease, abortion

How is Leptospirosis transmitted?

via urine + prefers warm and moist areas

What are the 5 most common findings in cases of pyelonephritis?

1. sick cow - uremia, smell ammonia 2. Dipstick - pus, blood 3. straining to urinate 4. raised tail 5. rectal - abdominal or pelvic masses, grossly enlarged ureters

What are some options for diagnosing pyelonephritis?

- clinical signs, PE, ammonia smell to breath - enlarged kidney via rectal palpation - culture - Corynebacterium renale, E.coli - U/S - exploratory

What are 3 options for treating pyelonephritis?

1. early case - PPG, ceftiofur 2. valuable cow - nephrectomy, commonly the other kidney is affected! 3. slaughter, condemnation with uremia

Pyelonephritis + hydronephrosis:

What are 3 biochemical signs of acute/chronic renal issues? What are some PE findings?

1. high BUN and creatinine 2. hypocalcemia 3. hyperphosphatemia anorexia, abnormal Dipstick findings

What is the best option for treating acute/chronic renal issues? What is there is no response?

fluids - solution to pollution is dilution! indicated uremia --> euthanasia

In what cattle is cystitis especially rare?

females - short and wide urethra = harder to get lodges - if uroliths are found in females, they tend to self-resolve