gastroenterological examination in ruminants
TRANSCRIPT
GASTROENTEROLOGICAL EXAMINATION IN RUMINANTS
Radhika VaidyaPhd. 1st YearGBPUA&T, Pantnagar
Gastroenterological examination
History Vaccination and anthelmintic protocols Recent outbreaks of disease such as
salmonellosis Endemic such as johne’s disease Recent changes in diet or management Introductions of new replacement stock or
heifers joining herd Time of onset, the duration, number
affected and the severity and the signs of disease observed
Calving date and stage of lactation
Observations at a distance Behavioural manifestations of
abdominal pain
Straining in attempts to defaecate (rectal tenesmus)
rate of eructation, regurgitation In chronic conditions there may be a low
body condition score and loss of weight
kicking at the abdomenreluctance to get up and downmovements made with caregrunting
Dropping of the cud Ruminal tympany Sunken eyes Increased respiratory rate(metabolic
acidosis) Recumbency Reduction in the quantity and a change
in the composition of the faeces Jaundice (non-pigmented areas of the
skin such as the udder) Neurological signs (hepatic
encephalopathy) Distension and changes in the
silhouette of the abdomen
Normal silhouette of the lateral contours of the abdomen (Posterior view)
Ruminal bloat causing distention of left dorsal quadrant of abdomen(Posterior view)
Pneumoperitoneum causing distention of the left and right dorsal quadrants of the abdomen. Posterior view
Vagal indigestion causing distention of the left dorsal and right ventral quadrants of the abdomen. Posterior view.
Vagus indigestion syndrome
Ascites causing gross distension of the right and left ventral quadrants of the abdomen Posterior view.
Examination of Mouth
Malocclusion of the upper and lower jaws is seen occasionally as a result of developmental abnormality
Neurological lesions affecting prehension, mastication and swallowing of food may occur
Inability to co-ordinate lip movements : 7th cranial (facial) nerve
Inability to move the tongue :12th cranial (hypoglossal) nerve(alkaloid toxicity, botulism or in listeriosis)
Inability to swallow : 9th cranial (glossopharyngeal) nerve &10th cranial (vagus) nerve (local damage to nerves by abscess or tumour formation)
signs of ulceration or damage: Buccal mucosa: diphtheritic membranes which are visible adjacent to the cheek
teeth in some cases of calf diphtheria (necrotic stomatitis) vesicles of foot-and mouth diseaseDental pad: bovine papular stomatitis, Bovine virus diarrhoea, foot-and-mouth disease
Mouth of calf showing (a) lesions of calf diphtheria (necrotic stomatitis) and also (b) a cleft palate.
Milk may run from the nose when a calf with this defect tries to swallow
The defect may be narrow and small or involve most of the roof of the mouth.
wooden tongue caused by Actinobacillus lignieresii tongue is very firm and inflexible to the touch; the animal is unable to advance it through the lips and excessive salivation may be seen
Paralysis of the tongue is seen in cases of botulism
Passage of nasogastric tube in a cow to confirm and possibly treat an oesophageal foreign body
Endoscopic view of bovine oesophagus
Examination of the left abdomen
Assessment of the rumen and reticulum
To check for evidence of a left displaced abomasum.
Rumen and reticulum Normal animal the contents of the upper
part of the rumen have a doughy consistency, but digital pressure should not leave a lasting impression once palpation ceases
In vagal indigestion there may be rumen overfill with fibre and an impression of a fist pushed into the sublumbar fossa will remain following withdrawal
Rumen movements observation of the sublumbar fossa palpation of rumen auscultation of the rumen
• Auscultation of the rumen movements by stethoscope is the most sensitive of the three methods (weak contractions can be detected that may be missed by the other techniques)
• Rasping or crushing sound or as crackling crescendo–decrescendo rolling thunder (persist for 5 to 8 seconds)
Auscultation of reticular contractions: auscultation over ribs 6 or 7 ventrally on the left side
Changes in rumen motility Hypomotility (less than one movement every2
minutes)
Rumenostasis may cause a free gas bloat and is associated with a number of conditions including milk fever, carbohydrate engorgement (ruminal acidosis) and painful conditions of the abodmen
Hypermotility (more than five movements every 2 minutes) is less common and conditions include the development of frothy bloat, vagal indigestion and Johne’s disease
Percussion of the left abdominal wall
Resonance over the gas in the dorsal sac of the rumen
As the percussion proceeds ventrally the resonance declines over the fibre and fluid sectors of the rumen
A diagnosis of ruminal bloat can be supported if hyper-resonance is present on percussion of the distended left sublumbar fossa
Anterior abdominal pain
The withers pinch test for anterior abdominal pain
animal is reluctant to move, has an archedback and grunts while defaecating with araised tail
The bar test for anterior abdominal pain
Left displacement of the abomasum
High yielding dairy cows (usually recognised during first few weeks after calving)
Fluid and gas filled displaced abomasum is between the left abdominal wall and the rumen
Musical tinkling sounds produced by escaping gas bubbles can sometimes be heard by simple auscultation (produced in response to adjacent ruminal movements)
High pitched resonant pings can be produced by percussion of the displaced abomasum
A left displaced abomasum (posterior transverse view at the level of 13 th rib)
Topographical location of abnormal pings that may be produced by percussion and auscultation in the presence of a left displaced abomasum: a left lateral view.
9th to the 13th rib along this line is often the most rewarding
gravid uterus abomasum intestines liver
Examination of right side ofthe abdomen
Distension of the right sublumbar fossa
right-sided abomasal displacement caecal dilatation and/or torsion vagal indigestion omasal impaction abomasal impaction
Simultaneous percussion and auscultation
Conditions producing pings include: abomasal dilatation caecal dilatation or torsion gas in the rectum pneumoperitoneum
Topographical location of abnormal pings that may be produced by percussion and auscultation in the presence of a right displaced abomasum and a distended caecum: right lateral view
Intestines Normal intestinal sounds (borborygmi) can
be heard intermittently in the right ventral quadrant (occur every 15 to 30 seconds)
Repeated peristaltic sounds may indicate intestinal hypermotility
Splashing sounds caused by excessive fluid in the intestines may be detected by ballottement and succussion (enteritis, ruminal acidosis or intestinalobstruction)
Liver clinical signs palpation and percussion clinical pathology and liver function
tests ultrasonography liver biopsy radiography, laparoscopy, exploratory laparotomy postmortem examination.
Palpation and percussion The liver lies beneath the costal arch
and cannot normally be palpated
If it is grossly enlarged or displaced posteriorly it may be palpated by pushing the fingers behind the right costal arch
chronic liver fluke infestation congestive heart failure
Distended rumen Caecal dilatation and torsion Gut tie Intestinal intussusception Gas or fluid content of the abnormal
viscus Indicators of peritonitis such as
adhesions Quantity and composition of the
faeces
Rectal examination
L-shaped rumen: occurs commonly in vagus indigestion and other diseases of the rumen characterized by gradual distension of the rumen
Cecal torsion: commonly palpable as long distended organ, usually movable, may feel the blind end
Abomasal torsion: commonly palpable as tense viscus in lower right half of abdomen
Abomasal impaction: not usually palpable in late pregnancy
Left-side displacement of the abomasum: usually cannot palpate the displaced abomasum but can often feel rumen, which is usually smaller than normal
Intussusception: not always palpable, dependent on location of intussusception and the size of the animal
Mesenteric torsion: usually palpable
Intestinal incarceration: commonly palpable
Peritonitis: only palpable if peritoneum of posterior aspect of abdomen affected
Lipomatosis: commonly palpable as 'lumps' in the abdomen and pelvic Cavity
Examination of the faeces
AMOUNT Mature cattle generally pass some
feces every 1.5-2 hours, amounting to a total of 30-50 kg/day in 10-24 portions
Reduction in the bulk of feces: decrease in feed or water intake a retardation of the passage through
the alimentary tractDiarrhea: the feces are passed more frequently and in greater amounts than normal and contain a higher water content (>90%) than normal
ABSENCE OF OR SCANT FAECES Failure to pass any feces for 24 hours
or more is abnormal and the continued absence of feces may be due to a physical intestinal obstruction
Paralytic ileus of the intestines due to peritonitis or idiopathic intestinal tympany also result in a marked reduction in feces, sometimes a complete absence, for up to 3 days
Some common causes of physical and functional obstruction of the alimentary tract of cattle
COLOR Influenced by nature of the feed, the
concentration of bile in the feces and the passage rate through the digestive tract
Calves reared on cows' milk normally produce golden yellow feces, which become pale brown when hay or straw is eaten
Feces of adult cattle on green forage are dark olive-green, on a hay ration more brown-olive, while the ingestion of large amounts of grain produces gray-olive feces
ODOR Fresh bovine feces are not normally
malodorous
Objectionable odors are usually due to putrefaction or fermentation of ingesta, usually associated with inflammation
The feces in cattle with salmonellosis may be fetid
CONSISTENCY Normal bovine feces are of a medium porridge
–like consistency
severe dehydration causes the formation of firm balls of feces arranged in facets inside the rectum, the surfaces of which are dark and coated with mucus
The feces of cows with left side displacement of the abomasum are commonly pasty in appearance
Sticky and tenacious feces are commonly seen in obstruction of the fore stomachs (vagus indigestion, chronic peritonitis)
OTHER SUBSTANCES IN THE FECES
Mucus: increased transit time of the ingesta in the large intestine
plug of mucus in the rectum is suggestive of a functional obstruction (paralytic ileus)
Fibrin: In fibrinous enteritis, fibrin may be
excreted in the form of long strands, which may mold into a print of the intestinal lumen (intestinal fibrinous casts)
Special Examination
Rumen fluid collection Nasogastric tube or an oral stomach
tube Rumenocentesis
Passing a stomach tube into the rumen per nasum with auscultation at the left sublumbar fossa
Rumen fluid analysis Colour: Normal olive green or greenish brown pH: 6.0 to 7.0 in cattle on a roughage-based diet 5.5 to 6.5 in cattle on concentrate-based diet
Sedimentation/flotation:4 to 8 minutes (Inactive microflora rapid sedimentation with little floating)
Redox potential (methylene blue reduction time): 3 to 6 minutes (>15 min inactive flora)
Protozoal activity Rumen fluid chloride concentration: <30mmol/l
Abdominocentesis and peritonealfluid analysis
usually only 15 to 20 ml of peritoneal fluid in the peritoneal cavity
Volume:0 to 5ml (10ml or above may indicate a pathological process)
Colour: clear, straw coloured or yellow A turbid sample indicates an increased protein and
cellular content Clotting of the sample indicates an increase in the
viscosity of the peritoneal fluid due to inflammatory processes
A high specific gravity and high protein content suggest vascular damage and leakage of plasma proteins in peritonitis or ischaemic necrosis of the bowel
Sites at which to perform anabdominocentesis
References Clinical Examination of Farm Animals by
Peter G.G. Jackson and Peter D. Cockcroft
Veterinary Clinical examination And diagnosis by Otto M Radositis, I G Joe Maythew and Dorren M Housten
VETERINARY MEDICINE A textbook of the diseases of cattle, horses, sheep, pigs and goats 10th edition by O. M. Radostits, C.C.Gay, K. W. Hinchcliff &P. D. Constable