Presence or severity of hypophosphatemia is not associated with survival outcome in postpartum downer dairy cows.

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the association between serum phosphorus concentration and the outcome of postpartum downer cows. ANIMALS: Postpartum downer dairy cows presented over a 22-year period. PROCEDURES: In this cross-sectional study (1994 to 2016), medical records of all postpartum downer cows presented to a referral large animal hospital were reviewed. The association between serum inorganic phosphorus concentration and survival was assessed using a multivariable logistic regression. RESULTS: 907 postpartum downer dairy cows were included and classified as hypophosphatemic (mild: > 2.25 to < 3.25 mg/dL, moderate: > 1.50 to ≤ 2.25 mg/dL, and severe: ≤ 1.50 mg/dL), normophosphatemic (≥ 3.25 and ≤ 8.76 mg/dL) or hyperphosphatemic (> 8.76 mg/dL). Hypophosphatemia was observed in 19.4% of the cows (n = 176). Of those, 54.5% (n = 96) were also hypocalcemic. Overall, 58.4% cows (n = 530) survived after hospitalization. Hypophosphatemia was not significantly associated with the outcome of postpartum downer cows (mild: OR = 1.0, 95% CI: 0.6 to 1.8; moderate: OR = 0.5, 95% CI: 0.2 to 1.1; severe: OR = 1.0, 95% CI: 0.4 to 2.4). CLINICAL RELEVANCE: Low serum phosphorus concentration was frequently observed with hypocalcemia and was not associated with the outcome of postpartum downer cows.

Surgical treatment of a paraphimosis in a castrated alpaca secondary to a preputial avulsion.

A 4-year-old recently castrated male alpaca was referred for preputial prolapse of 4 d duration. Clinical findings upon admission were a 5 cm edematous preputial prolapse with the exposed preputial epithelium ulcerated and slightly necrotic. Initial therapy included NSAIDs and local treatment. A severe local inflammatory reaction with a consequent paraphimosis occurred on the penis and prepuce presumptively secondary to the use of a common compound ointment (i.e., tetracycline, scarlet oil, and lanolin) 24 h after its application. Medical treatment and local debridement were unsuccessful in reducing the paraphimosis. The prolapse was successfully reduced by traction of the penis through a para-preputial incision under general anesthesia. The alpaca was discharged after 22 d in hospital. The alpaca is still in the herd 24 mo after discharge with no prolapse recurrence.

Traitement chirurgical d'un paraphimosis chez un alpaga castré secondaire à une avulsion p réputiale. Un alpaga mâle de 4 ans récemment castré a été référé pour un prolapsus préputial d'une durée de 4 jours. Les signes cliniques à l'admission étaient un prolapsus préputial oedémateux de 5 cm avec l'épithélium préputial exposé ulcéré et légèrement nécrotique. Le traitement initial comprenait des AINS et un traitement local. Une réaction inflammatoire locale sévère avec un paraphimosis conséquent s'est produite sur le pénis et le prépuce, vraisemblablement secondaire à l'utilisation d'une pommade composée conventionnelle (i.e. tétracycline, huile scarlet et lanoline) 24 heures après son application. Le traitement médical et le débridement local n'ont pas réussi à réduire le paraphimosis. Le prolapsus a été réduit avec succès par traction du pénis à travers une incision parapréputiale sous anesthésie générale. L'alpaga est sorti après 22 jours d'hospitalisation. L'alpaga est toujours dans le troupeau 24 mois après sa sortie sans récidive de prolapsus.(Traduit par Dr Serge Messier).

Sculpting the Sculptors: Methods for Studying the Fetal Cholinergic Signaling on Systems and Cellular Scales.

The non-neuronal, immunological effects of the cholinergic signaling are exerted on the system's scale of observation via the vagus nerve and on the cellular scale via α7 nicotinic acetylcholine receptor (nAChR) signaling in myeloid cells of the periphery or brain's microglia and astrocytes. The developmental effects of such multi-scale signaling can be conceived of as an example of psychoneuroimmunological (PNI) homeokinesis and, while reported in the literature, are not yet systematically well studied. To be better understood, the intricacy of the multi-scale interactions requires relevant preclinical animal models. Chronically instrumented non-anesthetized fetal sheep model comes with a strong track record of bench-to-bed translation and a large body of evidence for its strong resemblance to and relevance for human physiology on various scales of organization. Recently, there has been growing interest in pleiotropic effects of vagus nerve stimulation (VNS) on various organ systems such as innate immunity, metabolism, and emotion with implications for programming of PNI phenotype. Here we describe the procedures required to record and manipulate the vagus nerve activity in this large pregnant mammalian organism. Extending this in vivo model to in vitro, on the cellular scale, we present the method to manipulate the cholinergic signaling in ovine fetal microglia and astrocytes and analyze their responses on protein and RNA levels. Together these models can provide multi-scale-level mechanistic insights into the effects of cholinergic signaling on PNI phenotype.

Otitis media in dairy calves: a retrospective study of 15 cases (1987 to 2002).

Epidemiological data, clinical signs, complementary examination findings, antimicrobial treatments, and outcome were reviewed in 15 calves diagnosed with otitis media at the Centre hospitalier universitaire vétérinaire de l'Université de Montréal between 1987 and 2002. Age at presentation ranged from 2 to 18 weeks. A purulent ear discharge and epiphora were seen in 8/12 and 6/15 cases, respectively. Neurological signs observed were head tilt (13), eyelid ptosis (7), paresis/paralysis of the pinna (8), ataxia (2), strabismus (2), and convulsions (1). Concurrent pneumonia was frequently diagnosed (n = 11). A Mycoplasma sp. was the principal pathogen isolated from ear discharge; 6 out of 6 samples submitted were positive for mycoplasma. Tympanic bullae radiographs were considered abnormal in 12 out of 13 cases. Cerebrospinal fluid analysis was considered abnormal in 2 out of 5 cases. The antibiotic most commonly used was enrofloxacin (n = 7). Average treatment duration was 19.6 days. Four out of 8 treated animals for which follow-up information was available completely recovered. These results suggest that M. bovis is a major pathogen of otitis media in dairy calves and effective antimicrobial therapy should be of long duration.