Experimental production of fatal mucosal disease in cattle

Three outbreaks of mucosal disease were investigated. Careful examination of 47 cattle that were persistently viraemic with bovine virus diarrhoea virus (BVDV) revealed no clinical disease, no or low levels of BVDV antibody and only non-cytopathic virus in their blood. The four animals with mucosal disease all showed clinical disease and both cytopathic and non-cytopathic virus in their blood. Following post mortem examination, there were particularly high levels of cytopathic virus in gut tissue. A hypothesis for the induction of mucosal disease is suggested. It states that animals become persistently infected with non-cytopathic virus following in utero infection and when, in post natal life, they become superinfected with a cytopathic virus, then mucosal disease ensues. The experimental reproduction of mucosal disease in support of this hypothesis is described.     

Tracheal necrosis as a fatal complication of endotracheal intubation

This case report describes the death of a yearling Thoroughbred colt due to segmental severe necrotising tracheitis with stenosis of the tracheal lumen, 19 days after endotracheal intubation for elective endoscopic surgery. The stenosis of the trachea leading to asphyxiation was caused by an inflammatory process accompanied by massive accumulation of necrotic material, fibrinous inflammatory exudate, oedema and granulation tissue. The cause of this inflammation was likely to be a bacterial infection secondary to traumatic damage of the tracheal mucosa. Given the clinical history and location of the lesion, the endotracheal tube used for general anaesthesia was hypothesised to be responsible for this damage. Delayed tracheal necrosis as a fatal complication of endotracheal intubation has not previously been described in the horse and should be considered as a potential catastrophic consequence following relatively innocuous clinical signs.     

Prevention of traumatic indigestion in cattle.

The incidence of traumatic indigestion in an industrialised agricultural country, the economic losses due to the disease, and its prevention by use of a permanent reticular magnet are reviewed.     

Capnocytophaga canimorsus infections: a possibly fatal complication of bite wounds

Practising veterinarians and their assistants run the risk of being bitten by their patients, mostly cats and dogs, and many have experienced that bites and bite-wound infections can have unpleasant consequences. In recent years, more insight has been gained into a 'new' bacterial infection of bite wounds that not only has severe local effects but also potentially fatal systemic consequences. The bacterium involved is Capnocytophaga canimorsus. All bite wounds should be treated adequately, but this is especially so when wounds are infected with C. canimorsus. In this article, dog and cat bites are briefly described and then an overview is given of current knowledge of C. canimorsus and appropriate prophylactic measures.     

奶牛附红细胞体病并发弓形虫病的诊治报告

2002年7月，临沂市某家庭式小奶牛场发生了以发热、呼吸困难、腹泻、神经症状、怀孕母牛流产等为主的疾病。14头成年奶牛有9头发病，7头犊牛全部发病；死亡3头，其中成年怀孕牛1头，犊牛2头。总发病率为76％，病死率为19％。经诊断为附红细胞体与弓形虫的混合感染，并采取中西结合的综合性治疗措施，控制了病情发展，取得较好的效果。现将诊治情况介绍如下。     

Acute, fatal illness in cattle exposed to boron fertilizer

Twenty-six cows died after accidental exposure to boron fertilizer. Cows developed diarrhea, weakness, ataxia, signs of depression, and died, usually within a few hours. Seizure-like behavior was noticed in 2 cows, and 2 were suspected of aborting. High boron concentrations in tissues from affected cows confirmed ingestion of an appreciable amount of boron fertilizer. In an attempt to confirm the diagnosis of boron poisoning, boron fertilizer was administered to goats. A kid goat given 3.6 g of fertilizer/kg of body weight developed clinical signs similar to those seen in the cattle. Boron compounds such as sodium borate and boric acid have been considered generally nontoxic, and reports of livestock toxicosis are uncommon. This case report suggests that these compounds may be palatable under certain circumstances leading to ingestion of toxic quantities.     

An unusual pulmonary embolism after a fatal traumatic missile injury

Extract

While embolism following detachment of thrombi in veins of the pelvis and legs is not unusual. particularly in human medicine, other tissue and foreign body emboli in the lungs are much less common. Pulmonary embolism in man, for example. has been caused by the release of fat from traumatic injury sites, amniotic fluid into the maternal circulation following strong uterine contractions. air during intravenous fluid therapy. bone marrow after skeletal trauma, brain after severe head injury, liver following hepatic trauma or severe parenchymal necrosis. trophoblastic tissue during pregnancy, atheromatous material from severe arteriosclerosis, tumour metastases. cotton wool fibres by insertion of a needle into a vein and also. rarely. by vascular embolisation of a bullet(1)(2). In animals, pulmonary emboli are essentially derived from either thrombi, neoplasms or fat(3). Although skeletal muscle emboli have been experimentally induced in pulmonary arteries by parenteral injection of muscle tissue(4), this form of pulmonary embolism in clinical material has apparently not been described. This paper reports the finding of multiple skeletal muscle emboli in the lungs of a kangaroo after a fatal gunshot wound to the chest.     

Traumatic reticulitis in cattle: a review of 60 fatal cases

Sixty fatal cases of traumatic reticulitis in cattle were reviewed. Fifty-nine cases were caused by fragments of wire. A nail perforated the reticulum of 1 animal. Common clinical signs included decreased milk production, anorexia, fever, and weight loss. Abnormal or muffled heart sounds associated with pericarditis and epicarditis was the most common sequela, occurring in 40 cases. Fibrous adhesions found at necropsy in all cases suggest that initial clinical signs are difficult to recognize and in most cases it takes weeks to months for abnormalities to be observed.     

Clinical findings in 28 cattle with traumatic pericarditis

Traumatic pericarditis was confirmed postmortem in 28 cattle that had shown signs of a heart rate of more than 100 bpm, distended jugular veins and muffled heart sounds or abnormal pericardial sounds. The heart rate was higher than normal in 24 of them, and in 18 of these it ranged from 100 to 130 bpm. Twenty of the cattle had muffled heart sounds and 10 had pericardial sounds, such as splashing, rubbing or squeaking sounds. Both jugular veins were distended in 24 of the cattle, and 15 had oedema of the throat region, brisket and ventral abdomen. The most important laboratory findings were a reduced clotting time in the glutaraldehyde test in 26 animals, leucocytosis in 22 and a higher than normal concentration of fibrinogen in 19. There was an increase in the activity of gamma-glutamyl transferase in 20, and of aspartate aminotransferase in 15, and in the concentration of bilirubin in 11 of the cattle, indicative of hepatic congestion. A definitive diagnosis of traumatic pericarditis was made on the basis of the clinical findings in 15 of the 28 animals, all of which had typical signs of the disease. In another eight animals, traumatic pericarditis was suspected, although one of the characteristic signs was absent. A tentative but incorrect diagnosis of valvular endocarditis was made in three animals, and a similarly incorrect diagnosis of traumatic reticuloperitonitis was made in the other two.