Comparison of ventral coccygeal arterial and jugular venous blood samples for pH, PCO2, HCO3, Be-ecf and ctCO(2) values in calves with pulmonary diseases

The aim of this study was to determine whether venous blood samples can be used as an alternative to arterial samples in calves with respiratory problems and healthy calves. Jugular vein and ventral coccygeal artery were used to compare blood gas values. Sampling of the jugular vein followed soon after sampling of the ventral coccygeal artery in healthy calves (group I) and calves with respiratory problems (group II). Mean values of arterial blood for pH, pCO(2), HCO3act in healthy calves were 7.475 +/- 0.004, 4.84 +/- 0.2 kPa, 28.45 +/- 1.30 mmol/L compared with venous samples, 7.442 +/- 0.006, 6 +/- 0.3 kPa, 30.93 +/- 1.36 mmol/L, respectively. In group II, these parameters were 7.414 +/- 0.01, 5.93 +/- 0.3, 27.73 +/- 1.96 mmol/L for arterial blood and 7.398 +/- 0.008, 6.85 +/- 0.2 kPa, 29.77 +/- 1.91 mmol/L for venous blood, respectively. There were no statistically significant differences between arterial and venous pH, HCO3act, Be-ecf, ctCO(2) values with the exception of pCO(2) (P = 0.001) in group II. In group I, correlation (r(2)) between arterial and venous blood pH, pCO(2), HCO3act were 84.5%, 87.5%, 95.7%, respectively compared with the same parameters in group II, 80.8%, 77.1%, 70.3%

The treatment of experimental acute ethylene glycol (antifreeze) toxication using 4-methyl pyrazol and ethanol in dogs

The effects of ethanol and 4-methyl pyrazole were investigated in the treatment of 30 dogs toxicated with antifreeze (AF). The AF toxication produced significant increases in blood urea, creatinin and potassium and a decrease in blood calcium levels. Calcium-oxalate monohydrate, which is pathognomic for AF toxication, was consistently seen in urine sediment. Ethanol was rarely effective on the multisystemic effects that occurred in dogs or ADH inhibition. CNS findings were also observed after ethanol administration. The results indicated that 4-MP treatment provided earlier and safer healing than ethanol. It was deduced that 4-MP + NaHCO3 was more effective than ethanol + NaHCO3 on AF toxication, based on the metabolic parameters, urine chemistry and necropsy findings

Dairy cattle farming in Kars district, Turkey: II. Health status

This study was designed to determine the health status of dairy cattle, and the rates of and reasons for culling on dairy farms in Kars. A 2-stage stratified sampling strategy was used to select localities and farms. The study involved an interview with the farmers and regular visits to the farms. The farm prevalence levels of abortion, foot- and -mouth disease (FMD), respiratory problems, leptospirosis, blackleg, hardware (TRP), bloat and anthrax were 46.7%, 57.8%, 4.4%, 13.3%, 4.4%, 11.1%, 8.8% and 0% in 2001 and 53.3%, 62.2%, 17.8%, 17.8%, 4.4%, 11.1%, 11.1% and 8.8% in 2002, respectively. Incidence rates (animal-years/100) for abortion, leptospirosis, blackleg and anthrax were 7.7, 0.5, 0.2, and 0 in all herds and 20, 3, 8.7, and 0 in affected herds in 2001, and 6.7, 2.1, 0.2. and 0.4 in all herds and 12.5, 11, 6.1, and 1.9 in affected herds in 2002, respectively. Vaginal discharge (84.4%), infertility (40%), mastitis (55.6%), retained placenta (42.2%), dystocia (31.1%), weight loss (46.7%) and anorexia (31.1%) were the most common clinical problems encountered at farm level and animal level in the postpartum period. Around 11% of the farmers reported culling of their animals. The most common reasons for culling were old age (34.7% and 30.5%). abortion (22.6% and 19.5%), FMD (14.5% and 7.6%), infertility (1.6% and 14.4%), respiratory problems (4.8% and 5.1%), TRP (5.6% and 2.5%) and leptospirosis (0.8% and 3.4%) in 2001 and 2002, respectively. It is concluded that more detailed epidemiological studies addressing each disease are a prerequisite if profitable farming and preventive measures are planned

Dairy cattle farming in Kars district, Turkey: I. Characteristics and production

The objectives of the present study were to determine farm characteristics and production traits on dairy farms in Kars. A 2-stage stratified random sampling strategy was used to select localities (7) and farms (45). The study involved an interview with the farmers and regular visits to the farms. The survey identified important farm characteristics including demography, production and management practices. The results describe (a) farm demographics (number of family members, education of farmers, animal caretakers employed, types of herds, herd sizes, breeds, and age categories), (b) farm management practices; management at feeding (type, source, storage of feedstuffs, feeding, water supply and use of feed supplements during the indoor and outdoor periods, and pasture management), management at calving (use of maternity pens, colostrum feeding, and grouping of calves) and management at housing (period of housing, types of buildings, use of bedding, ventilation systems, and building cleanliness), and (c) production traits (breeding methods, dry period, calving rate, milk yield and processes). Some identified practices (period of housing, dairy breeds, dry period, milk yield and calving rate) differ from those in previous reports and others (use of crumbled dung as bedding, rare use of maternity pens, water from streams during the outdoor period, and common use of pastureland) require serious attention in terms of cattle health. The results may be of use in designing strategies to overcome drawbacks that are detrimental to feasible and profitable farming and also in forming bases for future epidemiological studies in Kars

Effect of time delay and storage temperature on blood gas and acid-base values of bovine venous blood

The aim of this study was to investigate possible changes in the gas composition and acid-base values of bovine venous blood samples stored at different temperatures (+4, 22 and 37 degreesC) for up to 48 h. Five healthy cattle were used in the study. A total of 15 blood samples collected from the animals were allocated into three groups, which were, respectively, then stored in a refrigerator adjusted to +4 degreesC (Group I, n = 5), at a room temperature of about 22 degreesC (Group II, n = 5) and in an incubator adjusted to 37 degreesC (Group 111; n = 5) for up to 48 It. Blood gas and acid-base values were analysed at 0 (baseline), 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 12, 24, 36 and 48 h of storage. A significant decrease (p < 0.001) was found, in the pH of the refrigerated blood after 5 h and its maximum decrease was recorded at 48 h as 0.04 unit. There were also significant alterations (p < 0.001) in the blood pH of the samples stored at room temperature and in the incubator after 2 and 3 h, respectively. The maximum mean alteration in pCO(2) value for Group I was -0.72 kPa during the assessment, while for groups II and III, maximum alterations in pCO(2) were detected as +2.68 and +4.16 kPa, respectively. Mean pO(2) values increased significantly (p < 0.001) for Group I after 24 It and for Group II after 6 h, while a significant decrease was recorded for Group III after 24 h (p < 0.001). Base excess (BE) and bicarbonate (HCO3) fractions decreased significantly for all the groups during the study, compared to their baseline values. In conclusion, acid-base values of the samples stored at 22 and +4 degreesC were found to be within normal range and could be used for clinical purposes for up to 12 and 48 h, respectively, although there were small statistically significant alterations. (C) 2003 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved

Are scoring systems sufficient for predicting mortality due to sepsis in the emergency department?

Objectives: Scoring systems have been used to risk stratify in intensive care units (ICU), but not routinely used in emergency departments. The aim of this study was to determine accuracy for predicting mortality in emergency medicine with Sequential Organ Failure Assessment (SOFA), Mortality in ED Sepsis (MEDS) score and Simplified Acute Physiology Score (SAPSII). Methods: This is a prospective observational study. Patients presenting with evidence of sepsis were all included. SAPSII, MEDS, and SOFA scores were calculated. Analysis compared areas under the receiver operator characteristic (ROC) curves for 28-day mortality. Results: Two hundred patients were included; consisting of 31 (14.3%) septic shock. 138 (69%) severe sepsis and 31 (15.5%) infection without organ dysfunction. 53 (26.5%) patients died within 28 days.Area under the ROC curve for mortality was 0.76 for MEDS (0.69–0.82), 0.70 for SAPSII (0.62–0.78); and 1.68 for SOFA (0.60–0.76) scores. Pair wise comparison of AUC between MEDS, SAPSII, SOFA and Lactate were not significant. Conclusion: According to our results; SOFA, SAPSII and MEDS were not sufficient to predict mortality. Also this result, MEDS was better than other scoring system. Keywords: Sepsis, Septic shock, Scoring systems, SOFA, SAPSII, MEDS, Lactate, Emergency medicin