Dairy 3

Question 1

why is there immune suppression at the time of calving?

Answer 1

cortisol released from the fetus to signal parturition
negative energy balance–>BHBA increases and neutrophil function decreases
estrogen increasing

Question 2

list some risk factors for uterine disease

Answer 2

bacterial species, level of contamination, DMI, energy and lipid metabolism health, stressors and hormonal changes, hypoglycemia

Question 3

true or false: almost all cows have bacterial contamination of the uterus after calving

Answer 3

true

Question 4

describe what retained fetal membranes are in dairy cattle

Answer 4

failure to pass fetal membranes within 24 hours after calving, failure of cotyledons to separate from caruncles

Question 5

what is the main reason why retained fetal membranes occur in dairy cows?

Answer 5

neutrophil dysfunction that begins before calving! it is not a disease of a “lack of squeezing”!

Question 6

you go on a farm call to see a cow named Gloria that has protrusion of some fetal membranes hanging ventrally from her vulva, she is showing tenesmus, and she STANKY. what do you think is the problem?

Answer 6

retained placenta/retained fetal membranes

Question 7

you decide that Gloria probably has retained fetal membranes. Should you treat her?

Answer 7

untreated, most will separate and fall away after a few days. Generally, treatment is initiated if a cow becomes systemically ill typically due to development of metritis.

cows that have RP that had dystocia, twinning, were induced, or are obese, are considered to be higher risk for metritis so you may want to consider treating those animals for metritis?

Question 8

some treatments that DO NOT work for retained placenta:

Answer 8

oxytocin, PGF2, and manual removal. THESE ALL DO NOT WORK DO NOT DO THIS

Question 9

what is metritis and who tends to get it?

Answer 9

inflammation of ALL of the layers of the uterus within 21 days of calving. Cows that have a RP and had some risk factors (like dystocia, twinning, obesity, etc), usually affecting primiparous cows moreso than multiparous

Question 10

true or false: cows with post partum metritis have lower DMI during post and pre partum periods

Answer 10

true

Question 11

if Gloria the cow with RP developed metritis, what clinical signs would she show?

Answer 11

foul smelling uterine discharge, and signs of systemic illness like fever, dullness, inappetence, tachycardia. Clinical signs usually appear within 1 week of calving, usually before 2 weeks after.

Question 12

Say that when you got to the farm, the farmer says that Gloria has stopped eating, and when you check her temp it is 39.7. What bacteria are you thinking are involved?

Answer 12

E coli: early uterine infection
gram negative anaerobes like fusobacterium necrophorum and bacteriodes.

more chonrically: trueperella pyognees

Question 13

so Gloria as RP but also isnt eating and has a fever. how are you going to diagnose her with metritis?

Answer 13

it’s easy to diagnose when it’s obvious

on rectal exam: flaccid uterus with fluid distension, pain on palpation, physometra (gas), when you gently rake with your hand you find brown tinged foul smelling discharge

for less obvious cases–>metricheck device and assigning a visual score of what comes out

Question 14

briefly describe the metricheck scores

Answer 14

0: clear translucent mucus
1: mucus with flecks of white pus
2: mucus containing <50% white or purulent material
3: mucus containing >50% of white or purulent material, can be bloody too

Question 15

describe briefly how to do odour scoring of vaginal discharge

Answer 15

0: no smell
3: rotten/putrid

Question 16

so say you do a rectal palpation on Gloria, and you find foul smelling discharge and she seems quite painful and the uterus is big and fluid filled. How are you going to treat her?

Answer 16

it depends..

cows w/ metritis and toxemia: antibiotics, fluids, NSAIDs

cows with metritis score of more than 2 (combined with odour and visual from discharge score) and a temp of more than 39.5–>can give antibiotics

cows with a score of more than 2 but no fever–>?

Question 17

true or false: intrauterine therapies are not effective for treating metritis

Answer 17

true

Question 18

which antibiotics would you use for treating metritis in a dairy cow?

Answer 18

ceftiofur, ampicillin, penicillin

Question 19

Gloria had a fever and a score of higher than 2, so you elected to give her systemic ampicillin. what effects do you hope to see?

Answer 19

absence of fever, absence of fetid discharge

Question 20

what is purulent vaginal discharge? what are the “terms” that make it purulent vaginal discharge?

Answer 20

purulent or mucopurulent vaginal discharge
- originates from the cervix
- it is “clinical”
- cervical diameter is more than 7.5cm

Question 21

what is endometritis? how is it diagnosed?

Answer 21

also called subclinical endometritis or cytological endometritis–>defined as endometrial inflammation. It is subclinical because only cytology or ancillary testing can diagnose it

a cytology brush or low volume uterine lavage is used to determine how many neutrophils there are

Question 22

purulent vaginal discharge (PVD) is associated with…

Answer 22

bacterial infection, especially T and A pyogenes

Question 23

true or false: many cows with endometritis do not have concurrent bacterial infection

Answer 23

true!

Question 24

how many cows with PVD have concurrent endometritis?

Answer 24

only half

Question 25

best way to diagnose purulent vaginal discharge in the field?

Answer 25

sweeping the anterior vagina with a metricheck device at around 4 weeks post partum

Question 26

best way to diagnose endometritis in the field?

Answer 26

cytobrushing is never done in the field–>impractical and costly

ultrasound can be used instead: you’ll see fluid in the uterus at week 5, will also see hyperechoic infiltrates

Question 27

what is the theory behind using PGF2 to treat PVD and endometritis?

Answer 27

idea is to induce luteolysis and eliminate progesterone (progesterone is immunosuppressive), and then when estrogen increases it stumulate contractions and supports combating infection. this has NOT been proved and there is NO evidence to support this

Question 28

if you shouldn’t use PGF2a to treat PVD and endometritis, what should you use instead?

Answer 28

antibiotics but a specific kind–>intrauterine administration with cephapirin Benzathine which is licensed for use in lactating dairy cattle, zero milk withhold, 2 day meat withhold

Question 29

do systemic antibiotics work for endometritis?

Answer 29

NO you need cephapirin specifically

Question 30

define pyometra

Answer 30

accumulation of purulent material within the lumen of the uterus in the presence of a persistent corpus luteum and a closed cervix

Question 31

true or false: cows with pyometra are systemically ill

Answer 31

FALSE they are systemically HEALTHY

Question 32

how is pyometra different than PVD? both involve purulent material in the uterus/vagina, so what’s the difference?

Answer 32

PVD–>may or may not be a corpus luteum and the cervix is patent with pus draining into the cranial vagina

Question 33

how do you treat pyometra in cows?

Answer 33

PGF2a to get rid of the CL and bring the cow into estrus–>why? to open the cervix, increase uterine tone, and expel the pus

typically you need more than one injection

if the cow is really valuble: intrauterine flush

Question 34

how do you differentiate between a pyometra and a pregnancy?

Answer 34

by palpation (membrane slip, placentomes)
by ultrasound

Question 35

describe the brief pathogenesis of fetal mummification

Answer 35

fetus dies usually at 4-6 months gestation, uterus contracts, progestin concentrations persist and fluid resorbs, fetus becomes dry and firm

Question 36

list some general causes of fetal mummification

Answer 36

genetic (rare), torsion of umbillical cord, infectious diseases such as: campylobacter fetus, neospora caninum, leptospira, BVD

Question 37

you go out to a farm to see a cow named Daisy. The farmer says he thinks she’s pregnant but wants you to check her before she calves in a few months. You do a rectal palpation and feel a thickened small uterus. There are no palpable cotyledons and no membrane slip. You proceed with ultrasound and you see no fetal fluids and a hyperechoic fetal mass. What is wrong here? How are you going to treat his?

Answer 37

fetal mummification

tx: PGF2a infections to lyse to CL and hopefully expel the fetus. if Daisy is a high value cow, coonsider a C section to remove the fetus. The cow can also be culled.

Question 38

A few days after you see Daisy, the same farmer calls about Daisy’s sister Rosie who isn’t eating and is ADR. When you get out to the farm, you see Rosie is acutely ill; she has abdominal straining, fetid vulvar discharge, and she has a fever. On rectal palp you feel a distended swollen uterus with some gas crepitus. What is wrong with Rosie? how will you treat her?

Answer 38

likely fetal maceration–>where fetal death occurs with partial cervical dilation leading to uterine contamination and bacterial growth

tx: try to remove the fetus manually thru the coochie very carefully and gently, or can do a hysterectomy. afterwards, antibiotics and supportive care

Question 39

which is more common, hydrops of the chorioallantois or of the amnion?

Answer 39

chorioallantois

Question 40

what is hydroallantois? how is it different than hydroamnios?

Answer 40

hydroallantois: abnormal transudative allantoic fluid. the fetus is normal, it is a defect of the placenta. considered a risk with twin pregnancies or IVF pregnancies

hydroamnios: the fetus is abnormal and the placenta is normal, cow is clinically normal

Question 41

clinical signs of hydroallantois?

Answer 41

progressive abdominal distension during the last 4-6 weeks of pregnancy, big juicy apple!!!

Question 42

clinical signs of hydroamnios?

Answer 42

slow enlargement pear shaped abdomen, accumulation of thick syrup like amniotic fluid

Question 43

a calf was born with brachygnathia and hydrocephalis. ?????

Answer 43

hydroamnios

Question 44

how do you treat dropsical conditions?

Answer 44

induce abortion/birth–>PGF2a, labor 36 hours later
supportive care

C sections are difficult but possible, terminal C section (kill the mom and save the baby)

Question 45

a cow has a rupture of the prepubic tendon, what do you do?

Answer 45

C section, get the baby out, cull the mom after the calf has been weaned. these are nearly impossible to fix.