Farm and animal-level risk factors associated with rectal prolapse in bovine and buffalo calves in Egypt with special reference to the optimal treatment strategy.

ABSTRACT

Background: Rectal prolapse (RP) is a serious illness of the rectum and small intestine causing serious health problems in domestic animals. However, there is paucity in the estimation of the risk factors associated with this problem in calves. Aim: In the present study, we investigated the prevalence and risk factors associated with the rectal prolapse in both bovine and buffalo calves in Egypt, highlighting the most appropriate treatment strategy. Methods: Forty-two calves (23 bovine and 19 buffalo) suffering from varying degrees of rectal prolapse were used. From the owners' anamnesis, the farm- and animal-level risk factors associated with each animal were collected. Fisher's exact tests were used to determine the distribution of frequencies in the different rectal prolapse grades. Descriptive statistics were calculated in the form of mean ± standard deviation (SD) using one-way analysis of variance. Crosstabs were used to determine Spearman's correlation between variables. According to the disease severity, the appropriate treatment strategy was accomplished either by medicinal or surgical interferences. Results: The final logistic regression form demonstrated that the statistical test, Hosmer and Lemeshow's goodness of fit, indicates a significant result (χ2 = 8.91). Body score was the potential risk factor for the occurrence of RP in calves. Medicinal management along with dietary modification was sufficient to treat 70% of grade I in a successful manner, while 33.3% (grade I and grade II) were effectively treated surgically with reduction and application of purse-string sutures. Conclusion: The current study advocates the valid role of resection of rectal mucosa combined with manual reduction and retention in treating calves suffering from grade II rectal prolapse. The final multivariate logistic regression model indicates that the calf's body score is a potential risk factor for the occurrence of RP.