Diagnosis of hepatocellular disorders in dairy cattle through digital analysis of ultrasonograms

Evaluation of diffuse hepatocellular disorders in 226 Holstein-Friesian dairy cattle was conducted using ultrasonography and digital analysis. Confirmation of the diffuse hepatocellular disorders was performed using histopathologic examination of hepatic tissue samples taken immediately after slaughtering the animals right after ultrasonography. Of the 226 animals examined, 120 (53.1 percent) had a normal liver, 61 (27.0 percent) had hydropic degeneration of the liver, 41 (18.1 percent) had fatty change of the liver, 3 (1.3 percent) had hepatic dystrophy and 1 (0.5 percent) had hepatic amyloidosis. Hydropic degeneration was further classified into: a) mild, affecting only the centrilobular area (41 animals); b) moderate, affecting both centrilobular and midzonal regions (15 animals); and c) severe, affecting the whole hepatic lobule (5 animals). The fatty occupying rate (FOR) of the liver was classified as: a) mild, 1-15 percent FOR (21 animals); b) moderate, 15.1-30 percent FOR (10 animals); and c) severe, 30 percent FOR (10 animals). Different echo patterns were distinguished in various diffuse hepatocellular disorders in dairy cattle. In particular, bright pattern, deep attenuation, vascular blurring and blurring of edges in fatty change of the liver, dark pattern and blurring of edges in hydropic degeneration and bright pattern in amyloidosis and hepatic dystrophy can be noted. The recognition of these patterns, therefore, can be useful in the diagnosis of diffuse hepatocellular disorders. Ultrasonography can be performed as a screening test before more envasive procedures, such as liver biopsy, to determine the extent and characteristics of changes in the hepatic parenchyma. It can also be used to supplement biochemical examination in the diagnosis of diffuse hepatocellular disorders in dairy cattle. Digital analysis of hepatic B-mode ultrasonograms can be useful in the diagnosis of hepatocellular disorders in dairy cattle. In particular, the following can be noted: a) for hydropic degeneration, relatively lower echo means at 3 cm, 5 cm, 7 cm, and 9 cm from the hepatic surface; b) for fatty change, relatively higher echo means at 1 cm from the hepatic surface and lower echo means at 5 cm, 7 cm and 9 cm from the hepatic surface; c) for hepatic dystrophy and amyloidosis, relatively higher echo means at 3 cm from the hepatic surface. Whereas A-mode and B-mode ultrasonograms can provide some information on the condition of the liver, quantification of the echoes through digital analysis can provide an objective method of analyzing the different ultrasonographic patterns