EVALUATION OF FATTY INFILTRATION OF THE LIVER IN DAIRY CATTLE THROUGH DIGITAL ANALYSIS OF HEPATIC ULTRASONOGRAMS |
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Authors: | Jezie A. Acorda DVM MAgr Haruo Yamada DVM DVSc Seyed Mehdi Ghamsari DVM |
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Affiliation: | Department of Veterinary Surgery, School of Veterinary Medicine, Obihiro University of Agriculture and Veterinary Medicine, Obihiro City, Hokkaido 080, Japan. |
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Abstract: | Ultrasonography of the liver of 49 Holstein-Friesian cows was performed, liver specimens were taken, examined microscopically and the fatty occupying rate (FOR) was calculated. Echoes from the hepatic B-mode ultrasonograms were quantified as histogram mean (Emean) and histogram mode (Emode) of echo amplitudes within various areas at a depth of 1–9 cm from the hepatic surface. Of the 49 animals, 26 had a normal liver and 23 had fatty infiltration of the liver, diagnosed through histopathological examination. Fatty occupying rate ranged from 1.7 to 64.5%, with 11 animals having 1–15% FOR (mild fatty infiltration), 6 having 15.1–30% FOR (moderate fatty infiltration) and 6 having > 30% FOR (severe fatty infiltration). At 1 cm, severe fatty infiltration had higher Emean and Emode than normal liver (p < 0.05). At 7 cm and 9 cm, moderate and severe fatty infiltration had lower Emeans and Emodes than normal liver (p < 0.001). The results suggest that digital analysis of hepatic ultrasonogram can be useful in the evaluation of the degree of fatty infiltration of the liver in dairy cattle. |
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Keywords: | bovine digital analysis fatty infiltration liver ultrasonography |
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