Effect of early feed restriction on compensatory growth and carcass characteristics of Betong chicks

This experiment was conducted to determine the effect of early feed restriction on compensatory growth, production performance and carcass characteristics of Betong chickens. Completely randomized design was used comprising 4 treatments, each treatment with 4 replications (10 birds/replicate). The control group was fed ad libitum, while the other groups were fed a restricted diet for 20%, 40% and 60% of the control group during the chick’s age of 1-3 weeks, then fed ad libitumly to 16 weeks of age. At 3 weeks of age, birds fed ad libitum had higher body weights, feed intakes (P<0.05) and feed conversion ratios (P<0.01) than this restricted birds. After refeeding phase, body weight, feed intake, feed conversion ratio and percentage of carcass traits as well as digestive organs of birds were not significantly different among the experimental groups. This indicated that the restriction of feed up to 60% of the control group during the first 3 weeks of birds’ age had no effect on final performance and carcass characteristics of Betong chickens because of the compensatory growth and feed intake during the refeeding phase. Such restriction could save 206-263 g feed per chick

Acute respiratory infections in hospitalized children in Vientiane, Lao PDR - the importance of Respiratory Syncytial Virus

The Human respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) is one of the most important viral pathogens, causing epidemics of acute respiratory infection (ARI), especially bronchiolitis and pneumonia, in children worldwide. To investigate the RSV burden in Laos, we conducted a one-year study in children &lt;5 years old admitted to Mahosot Hospital, Vientiane Capital, to describe clinical and epidemiological characteristics and predictive factors for severity of RSV-associated ARI. Pooled nasal and throat swabs were tested using multiplex real-time PCR for 33 respiratory pathogens (FTD® kit). A total of 383 patients were included, 277 (72.3%) of whom presented with pneumonia. 377 (98.4%) patients were positive for at least one microorganism, of which RSV was the most common virus (41.0%), with a peak observed between June and September, corresponding to the rainy season. Most RSV inpatients had pneumonia (84.1%), of whom 35% had severe pneumonia. Children &lt;3-months old were a high-risk group for severe pneumonia, independently of RSV infection. Our study suggests that RSV infection is frequent in Laos and commonly associated with pneumonia in hospitalized young children. Further investigations are required to provide a better overall view of the Lao nationwide epidemiology and public health burden of RSV infection over time