Lameness Flashcards
What are the 8 steps of examination of a lame cow?
- Which leg?
- Is it swollen/painful above the claws?
- Check external surfaces of claws, compare with other leg
- Restrain cow, lift leg, clean claws
- Pare/sand away superficial sole
- Check white line
- Hoof testers to check for any sensitive areas
- Examine upper leg if no claw abnormalities detected
How can you tell if a cow is lame in the hind or forelimb?
Head up - forelimb
Head down - hindlimb
What does the presence of pain and swelling above the claws indicate?
Infection - eg interdigital necrobacillosis (footrot)
What causes ‘footrot’?
Fusobacterium necrophorum in conjunction with Bacteroides melaninogenicus
What are the clinical signs of interdigital necrobacillosis?
Fever and drop in milk production. Coronary band, pastern - up to fetlock - swelling. Interdigital skin warm, tight and reddened and often splits to reveal necrosis of underlying tissue and foul-smelling pus.
What are some complications are common with ‘footrot’?
Septic arthritis of DIP joint, septic bursitis of the distal sesamoid, abscessation of the heel, tenosynovitis of digital flexor tendon.
How can you reduce the risk of interdigital necrobacillosis in a herd?
Provide suitable, well maintained tracks, reduce moisture in environment and the use of copper sulphate footbaths during risk periods. Prompt treatment and isolation of affected cows
What is an interdigital fibroma and when does it cause lameness?
A fleshy growth in between the claws the occurs sporadically with the possibility of genetic links. Lameness occurs when the fibroma gets large or becomes infected.
What causes interdigital dermatitis and what are the clinicals signs? How may you treat?
Dichelobacter nodosus causing a mild, superficial infection of the skin between the claws but rarely lameness or lowered production. Normally no discharge or swelling, but may have foul smell. Treat with topical oxytetracycline aerosol or copper sulfate
How do you classify digital dermatitis lesions?
M0 - Healthy skin
M1 - Early stage skin defect
What kind of gait do cows with thin soles have?
Shuffling, difficult to detect lameness in any particular limb
Are hind claws or front claws more commonly affected by bruised soles?
Hind in older cows, front claws in heifers
What sort of gait may you see in cows with sole penetration?
Slide affected foot along surface before fully bearing weight
Where is a sole ulcer always located?
Immediately distal to the flexor tuberosity of the distal phalanx. This sits at the sole/heel juction, nearer to the axial (centre) than abaxial wall
What surface is a major risk factor for sole ulcers?
Concrete
What risk factors play a part in ‘Sandcrack’?
- Dry brittle horns due to warm, dry, windy conditions and sandy soils
- Coronary band damage
- Zn and CU def
- Sudden, excessive pressure (jumping/galloping)
What is a ‘hardship groove’?
A horizontal fissure of the claw wall due to temporary total interruption of the claw horn growth. This may be due to any severe systemic illness, upset in metabilism or malnutrition.
How may you easily tell the difference between septic arthritis and ‘footrot’?
Septic arthritis causes swelling that involves one claw only.
What often causes acute laminitis?
Accidental carbohydrate overload
Subclinical laminitis is often associated with what other disease?
SARA - Subacute rumen acidosis
What is the postulated aetiology of subclinical laminitis?
Toxic substances (histamine, lactic acid, serotonin and endotoxin) are formed/released in digestive tract often as a consequence of rumen acidosis. These substances disturb microvasculature and haemodynamics of corium causing tissue hypoxia, nutrient starvation and ischaemic necrosis.
AND/OR
Weakening of the suspensory apparatus the holds distal phalanx within the claw capsule
How can you treat acute laminitis?
NSAIDs and antihistamines
How can you confirm a dislocated hip?
Deep palpation while walking will show abnormal movement of the head of the femur and loud creaking noises.
How do you reduce a dislocated hip?
Apply traction on limb while at same time rotating the femur by pushing down on
stifle and lifting the hock
What is the treatment for upward fixation of the patella?
Medial patella desmotomy
How do cows with upward fixation of the patella walk?
With a jerky movement, the leg getting caught behind in extension. The leg is then jerked upwards and forwards as the patella frees itself.
What is spastic syndrome?
Intermittent spasmodic contration of hindlimb muscles. Often mature bulls. Hindlimbs extend caudally. Worsens. Probably hereditary component.
What is spastic paresis?
Progress, one/both hindlimbs in growing cattle with hyper-extension of the hock. Also known as Elso heel. Hereditary component. Treat with partial/total tibial neurectomy.
What clinical signs are seen with brachial plexus paralysis?
Complete paralysis of entire forelimb
What clinical signs are seen with radial paralysis?
If high - shoulder and elbow drops, animal unable to extend limb
If low - unable to extend digits
Can bear weight
What clinical signs are seen with sciatic nerve paralysis?
Innability to flex stifle, extend hock annd flex/extend digits.
How do you grade sciatic nerve paralysis and how does that affect prognosis?
Grade 1: loss of proprioception, but full sensation to pastern - recovery a few days
Grade 2: loss of sensation to anterior pastern - recovery 7-10 days
Grade 3: No superficial sensation below the hock - recovery 2-4 weeks
Grade 4: Loss of deep pain reflexes and all sensation at pastern - recovery >4 weeks
What clinical signs can be seen in femoral paralysis?
Inability to extend stifle and flex hip. Unable to bear weight
What is the prognosis of femoral paralysis?
Good for animals that can at least walk a few paces after lifting with good nursing
What clinical signs can be seen in obturator paralysis?
Leg sticks out from body.
What clinical signs can be seen in peroneal paralysis?
Knuckling of fetlock and extension of hock
What clinical signs can be seen in tibial paralysis?
Stifle dropped, hock over flexed
What are the 4 main risk factors of lameness in cattle?
Cow comfort, nutrition, cow factors and the environment
List four (4) of the causal factors, which are
associated with cow comfort, and which you
would assess during a herd lameness investigation?
- Poor track maintenance
- Impatient handling
- Concrete
- Holding yard and Milking shed
- Housing
What are three indications of impatient handling/pushing of cows?
- Cows at the back begin to swap from one side to another to escape herdsperson
- Cows pushing into each other
- Cows lift their heads above those in front
What is the ideal track?
-Short
